Eight for the Outcast
by WindWarrior89
Summary: There's a vengeful vampire out on the lose, claiming eight human lives in every town he visits. Annette, a vampire herself, asks for Dante's assistance to rid of his presence before it's too late. Rated T for some language may change possible DantexOC
1. Vampires Don't Exist

Eight for the Outcast

_Disclaimer: I do not own Devil May Cry or any of the characters_

Chapter 1: Vampires don't exist

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The news blared as the man behind the bar turned up the volume to an almost deafening decibel. Everyone, with the exception of a lean figure in a long, black leather coat, turned their attention to the broadcast.

"_So far, there have been 8 murders in the city since Tuesday of this week. The police have no possible suspects as of the moment and the citizens in the areas around the murders are in a state of panic. The police are doing their best to keep the stress as low as possible_," the woman reported, looking just slightly frightened herself.

"_Janelle is it true that the victim's blood was all drained upon discovery?_" asked a man from the studio.

Janelle cleared her throat and nodded in a professional manner, "_That is true. The police are baffled at this, and are calling this the Vampire Case for now because of that evidence. There were even two puncture wounds found on each victim's neck, as if they in fact _have_ been bitten by a vampire. Authorities believe that it is just some prank conjured up by an insane mind. We will have more on the matter in just a few_"

People in the small diner began talking amongst themselves; some were worried as others just brushed it off. The food was still being handed out despite this, and it pleased the lean person at the booth near the back that the newscast wasn't going to stop the people from bringing her the meal she had ordered. Long locks of curly, dark brown hair flowed over her shoulders and down her back with choppy bangs covering her forehead. Radiant violet eyes swept the crowd in the diner with little interest. Her face had sharp, yet elegant and noble features. She looked like a model that had just come from a show in her short, black and deep purple, lacy dress under a long, black leather coat that reached her ankles. Stiletto shoes that matched the purple in her dress added length to her already long, milky legs.

One of the women behind the counter finally brought over the food that had been ordered almost an hour ago. She wouldn't have minded the wait so much if she hadn't ordered a meal that could have been prepared in less than two minutes.

"A salad with extra tomatoes and Italian dressing and a glass of Pepsi," the waitress sat the food down, "Enjoy, miss"

"Thank you," the woman sitting replied, forming a smile with shimmering lips

The waitress walked away without a second glance, trying to make her way back behind the counter through the sea of worriers. The woman in the coat took out a sleek cell phone and dialed in a number as she popped a sliced tomato into her mouth. An answer to her call came after the first ring, "Yes?" a man asked in a voice that would have had any woman get chills of pleasure by just the sound.

"Listen, Isaiah, there have been attacks in this town as well," her beautiful voice stated professionally, obviously not affected by his voice, after swallowing the tomato.

The man on the other side of the line sighed irritably at the news before speaking, "He's going to keep taking eight victims everywhere he goes until he gets back to the coven. The best thing to do is keep your identity a secret as you can, as you have been doing , and keep trying to track him before he can make it here"

The woman looked out the window and up at the moon in the sky that was partially eclipsed. She said nothing for a moment, even though she knew Isaiah was patiently waiting for a reply.

"Isaiah?"

"Yes?"  
"If I can't catch him in the next town, I'm going to pay a visit to that man I told you about a year ago," she took a sip of her Pepsi, waiting for a reply.

It was Isaiah's turn to be thoughtful; she could barely make out his breathing as she waited.

"I don't encourage the notion but…" the woman could hear some other voices in the background, probably some of the others in the coven passing by his room, "Only if you can't stop the outcast in the next town ok? I have to go now. Mother is wanting to know about what is going on. Be safe Annette, alright? I don't want to lose the only sister I have left"

Annette smiled, wishing she were there to hold her brother, "I'll be fine brother, don't worry about me ok? Just look after yourself and the others until I get back, can you handle that responsibility?"

"Are you mocking me? Of course I can handle it!"

_One week later…_

Lady crossed her legs and looked down at the briefcase that Dante put down onto the table. The restaurant was hardly busy and this one in particular didn't have any customers that put their noses into other's businesses. She opened the case and a pleased smile stretched her lips as she saw the cash that was inside.

"It seems that every time I pay you and Trish back, more gets added to my tab," Dante sat down across from Lady who closed the briefcase, "I'm starting to wonder if this tab of yours is just a scam"

"Oh, quit complaining. If you hadn't destroyed that building in the last mission, the amount on your tab wouldn't have gone up," Lady shook her head, "The mayor of that town almost had you doing community service if I hadn't said anything"

"Next time tell the demons to show up in some open field or something then," Dante leaned back and formed a bridge with his legs up onto the edge of the table, interlocking his hands behind his head, "Besides, don't you think it's a little unfair that you come to me to take care of some of the jobs and then make _me_ pay you for it. Where's the compensation for the work I did?"

"It would just end up being my money in the end anyway," Lady countered

The silver haired demon slayer opened his mouth to argue the point she had made, but found he couldn't. He took his legs off the edge of the table and leaned forward as the pizza he had ordered was almost to the table. Dante and Lady spent the next few minutes playfully arguing over the money situation again; Dante did so with a mouth full of pizza half the time. That was, until Lady changed the subject after the waiter had filled up Dante's glass for the third time.

"Have you heard of the events occurring in the towns nearby, Dante?" she asked, fingering the glass of ice water.

"A little bit…the Vampire Case right?"

"That's the one. You know as well as anyone that a human can't fully drain every last drop of blood from a person's body in such a short amount of time, and with just two small puncture wounds," Lady looked up from her glass of water, seeing that Dante was coming to the same conclusion she was.

"You're saying it's a demon," he finished his drink, "It does look like it, but I can't make any assumptions just yet. Vampires don't exist anyway, right?"

He only shrugged and shoved the last of the pizza into his mouth. Lady looked out the window and sighed, "True, but we can't rule out that option yet either. I'm going to look into it a little more, maybe have Trish help out"

"I hear that it's eight people in each town," so Dante was interested after all, "There's gotta be a reason behind that. Wait, am I going to be getting charged for researching too? Because if that's the case, forget it"

A devious smile played across Lady's face, her mismatched eyes sparkling, "That's a good idea," she said before laughing, "But no, I feel sorry for you so there won't be a fee"

"Remind me to keep my mouth shut about anything like that in the future. I'd really hate to have something else to pay for," Dante smirked, the two obviously joking with each other.

"Trust me, I'll think of something else," Lady returned as she stood up, "I have to go now, I'm supposed to be meeting a client in about an hour. Keep a lookout just in case victims start showing up around here, alright? If I find anything first, I'll let you know"

With that, the woman headed out of the restaurant. Dante heard the purr of the woman's motorcycle before the motor roared and she sped away. He was about to leave until he saw Enzo show up, who waved as soon as he noticed Dante. The pudgy man made his way to Dante's table and sat where lady had previously been.

"Have you heard about the Vampire Case yet, Dante?" he asked, removing his hat and setting it on the table.

"I was just talking with Lady about it, why?" Dante asked, not too thrilled by Enzo's presence when he had wanted to be alone for the rest of the night.

"Well, a body has just turned up; about forty-five minutes go…well, forty-seven if you want to get all technical," Enzo informed, his face red and sweaty from more than likely running around looking for the demon slayer, "The weird thing is that it happened in a crowded club. They found the guy's body on the bathroom floor all shriveled up"

Dante's eyes narrowed; so now the attacker was in the same city as him. Now waiting for him wasn't a problem, it was finding him. He stood up and grabbed Rebellion, which had been placed next to his seat.

"Enzo, you get the bill, I'm heading out," Dante made his way out of the door before the meaty man, still sitting, could argue.

*************

The hills of her stilettos echoed against the tile of the bathroom floors. The door to the men's restroom was locked so she could examine the body without interruption. She kneeled down next to the shriveled up form up a man in his twenties who now looked well into his hundreds. His face was frozen in a silent scream with his head lolled to the side. '_Vampire Case…They have no idea just how fitting that is…no idea_,' she shook her head and stood up to her full height, which easily could have been measured at 5'7". Her long, dark brown ringlets bounced as she turned her head towards the open stalls, deciding to look inside to see if there was the small chance of a clue being left behind. However, just as she had figured, there were none. There wasn't even a hint that a struggle had taken place here. Just a poor, shriveled up man who didn't deserve what had happened. She adverted her violet gaze over to his form with sorrow. She didn't like seeing people, innocent people, dying.

Deciding that there was nothing else to do here, she left from where she had came after unlocking the bathroom door. Jumping up with inhuman grace, she left through the opening in the ceiling and moved the tile back over to hide that she had ever came through that way. She made her way to the roof and pulled out her cell phone, the wind toying with her curls and tugging at her long leather coat. It rang twice before her brother answered with the usual 'yes?'

"He's made it to this town, before I could even make it to that man. I couldn't catch him in the last town, either. I didn't even catch a glimpse of him…nothing at all. He's getting faster, Isaiah"

"This worries me," she could almost see him frowning, "Go to that guy as soon as you can. Tell him we can pay him whatever he wants…that we just need help. With him helping us, we stand a better chance against the outcast. Damn it all!"

She winced at Isaiah's sudden outburst, "Calm down. Getting angry will only blind you from what you really need to be thinking about. I'll go to that man tonight since it isn't too late, you just concentrate on the duties I gave to you, understand?"

"Understood," he breathed, "Love you Annette, talk to you next time"

"I love you too brother, now get some rest"

**************

Both Trish and Lady had appeared at Dante's office after the incident, just like he thought they would. He leaned against his desk and scanned over the news article that Trish had printed out just moments ago. The news of the murder in the club had been posted only minutes after it had been discovered. It turns out that both women found out about the incident right after he had left Enzo at the restaurant. The paper held no new information about a possible suspect or how they were draining the blood from their victims so fast.

"I've noticed something, besides there always being the eight victims," Trish spoke, "There are always three women victims and five men. And, they are always murdered in the same order; one man, one woman, two men, two women, and then two more men. Always in that order. This mean's that tomorrow's next victims will be a woman"

"Really?" Lady asked, "I never noticed"

"It's obvious that the authorities haven't caught on yet. Half of them aren't very observant anyway," Dante put the paper down, "So, what do you have planned ladies?"

Lady crossed her arms, "Well, we can't exactly try to be bait for this guy. His attacks are pretty random. The best thing to do is just keep a really close eye on this town"

"I have to agree," Trish nodded, some of her long blonde hair falling over her shoulder, "But we still need to be careful. We don't know exactly what we are up against. It is best to play it safe"

The woman that resembled Dante's late mother turned her gaze over to Dante, her blue eyes telling him to follow the same advice. He only shrugged, "I'll do my best". Trish not only resembled his mother, but sometimes unintentionally played the part, too.

"Well, I got a small job to get done tonight," Dante stood away from his desk, "If you find anything else out, let me know"

He grabbed his long red coat and slipped it on before grabbing Rebellion. The two women followed him out side before going their separate ways into the night. Dante watched until the two were out of sight before he decided to continue walking away from the Devil May Cry.

"Please, wait!"

Dante stopped and looked around for the source of the voice. Light footsteps and the fluttering of fabric could only be heard, the silver haired demon slayer not able to pinpoint where it was coming from. He could hear a woman's heels right before a slim figure jumped down in front of him, her ringlets floating for an instant in the air. Glowing violet eyes gazed up at Dante as she stood up to her full height. He was prepared to grab out a gun, should she decide to attack.

"You're the handy man that will take any dirty job, right?"

So she came with the password.

"More or less," Dante couldn't exactly tell what the woman was. She wasn't demon, that was for sure.

"My name is Annette, I've come to you seeking assistance against the man who is responsible for the Vampire Cases," she greeted, "I'll have my brother wire about five million to you by the end of the night, and other six when this incident is over with"

Dante whistled at the amount, realizing that the murder couldn't just be an average demon attacking humans. It was either that or she was just really generous with the pay. Either way, he wasn't going to complain. Annette was patiently waiting for a response.

"I'll take it, but right now I have to get to another job. You can follow along and tell me or you can wait in the Devil May Cry until I come back, your call"

Annette nodded, her dark curls bouncing, "I'll follow, it'll be faster that way. But what's the job?"

"Just some small demons trying run a family out of their house, nothing special"

She looked at him as if that type of job was beneath a man of his caliber, but said nothing as she started to follow him. The city lights that lit up the night sparkled around the city like earthly stars. People walked past Dante and Annette either sluggishly or hurriedly, both occasionally bumping shoulders with them on the narrow sidewalk. At one point, Annette was forced to quickly dodge a beer can that had been thrown out from one of the bars, the customer obviously drunk and mad. When she looked to her side to see Dante, she found that he was already ahead of her. Annette swiftly closed the distance between them with inhuman grace, appearing beside him like some apparition.

"Do you mind if I ask what you are exactly?" Dante questioned

The woman let out a small chuckle, "You wouldn't believe me if I told you, nobody would. They'd think I was crazy," she held her smile as she looked up at the city lights with an almost childish delight; "I'm going to miss these sights once this whole ordeal is over. It's nice to finally be away from that mansion, even if only for a little while"

"Your parents have you locked up or somethin' to protect you against the big bad wolves?" Dante joked

"Funny and ironic, but no. It's just to protect the whole coven, that's all. If people discovered us, they'd hunt us down for sure," she looked a little dismayed, "We aren't bad people, but human's are quick to make assumptions just by who and what people are without getting to know them"

Thirty minutes of silence elapsed after the conversation before the two arrived at the address Dante had been given. However, what he saw was an abandoned warehouse when he was expected a house where a family had been living. He repeated the address in his mind as he looked at the street name once more and the number spray painted onto the side of the rusted building in blocky numbers. Annette looked up at him, just as confused as he was.

"Are you sure this is the place? I thought you said it was a house?" she looked back at the building

"I think the caller is also my target for tonight," Dante scratched the back of his head, "happens a lot. Let's go in and find that suicidal bastard"

Dante slid open one of the large rusty doors, the wheels screeching against the tracks from years of neglect. A mammoth of a rat ran by at the sudden intrusion towards a hole in the opposite wall and squeezed its huge body through the opening. Annette walked in ahead Dante before he stopped sliding the huge door open. Both glanced up at the only light that was lit, a small lamp dangling from a high steel beam in the center of the building. Even though it was bright up above, down below it cast an eerie light on a shriveled up body of a woman.

"Damn! He's moving faster than before!" Annette cursed, clenching a slender hand into a fist.

"Were we called here just to see this?" Dante sighed irritably

"No," a voice echoed, "That's just the welcome"

Dark shadows began fluttering across Dante's and Annette's visions before they saw a tall man standing under the light next to the murdered woman. Shoulder length, dark blonde hair glistened in the shallow light cast down from the lone lamp up above as piercing red as stared at the two across the room with a lust for blood. A face that should have looked like a handsome angel's was contorted with malice as a white suit seemingly tried to portray a hint of false innocence. However, the suit itself was stained with some of the man's murderous intent as some spots of blood could be seen. With speed that not even Dante could match, the man was in front of Annette and pressing her against the wall. While his hands were around her slender neck, he scowled at the woman before turning an angry face towards Dante who was prepared to shoot.

"Do that and I break her neck. And don't think I'm bluffing," he sneered.

"L..ouis," Annette gasped, her hands firmly gripping his wrists.

"Still remember my name? I'm touched," his expression held as he turned his red eyes back to her.

Dante was itching to pull out Ebony and Ivory, but Annette's life depended on his decision right now, "What are you trying to accomplish by doing all this blondie?"

"Why, it's revenge! Simply that," Louis laughed insanely, his hands still around Annette's neck, "Plus, I enjoy drinking all of that blood I had missed out on for over 400 hundred years! The act of taking in all that blood is simply intoxicating. The young and rebellious taste the best"

"How long…do you think you can…get away with this?" Annette struggled to breathe, her fingernails digging into Louis' wrists

"For as long as I feel like it"

Annette smirked and chuckled, "Not as long as you're close to me"

Louis was completely bewildered as to what she meant by that, even when it was clear to him that he had the upper hand in this situation.

"You weren't there when my powers developed you imbecile," an instant after those words had left her mouth, her hands sprouted fire. She held onto Louis for a moment longer to let the flames spread up part of his arm. The man screamed out in pain as he watched the fire dance up the sleeve of his suit before he was able to pull away.

"Bitch! You'll pay for that! Once I'm done here, the coven is next and I'll wipe them all out!" Louis cradled his arm and disappeared.

Dante watched as the flames slowly vanished from Annette's hands without leaving a single mark. She rubbed where Louis had grabbed her, his grip still stinging, "I guess I failed to explain to you the situation on the way here like I had promised," violet eyes met with ice blue, "It's a good thing you didn't shoot, or you would have caught the ricochet"

"I'm taking it that the lunatic we just saw was the man you want me to go after," Dante took another glance at the shriveled up body in the center of the room, "But I need you to explain to me what is going on and why. And what do you mean ricochet?"

The woman dusted her coat off, "Let's go back to your shop. It's probably best if I explain things there so there aren't any interruptions"

Slowly, the woman's goddess like beauty was beginning to make sense as the situation sunk in.

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_A.N. Well, here's the first chapter of my new Devil May Cry fanfic. I usually don't like to post stories unless they are 100% finished, but I thought I'd make an exception since I haven't done anything in so long. I'm still trying to improve on my writing, so if you have any constructive criticism I welcome it =D. _

_Thank you so much to both Tori-chan and Deb-chan!! Thank you for proofreading my stories Tori-chan! And thank you so much for your support Deb-chan!_

_I hope you can look forward to the future chapters of this fanfic (and keep your fingers crossed that I can finish it lol)_


	2. Please Don't Tempt

Eight for the Outcast

ì¥Á1511ð¿1111111111111_Disclaimer: I do not own Devil May Cry or any of its characters…just my OCs_

Chapter 2: Please Don't Tempt

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Trish arrived at the Devil May Cry shortly after Annette and Dante had made their own entrance. The two women quickly made acquaintance before Annette decided to begin explaining; with Dante sitting at his desk and Trish standing in between the two with a hand on her hip

"You have no idea just how fitting the name for this case is, considering it was, in fact, done by a vampire," Annette sat down on the arm of a sofa, her legs crossed, "I came to ask you to exterminate Louis before he could get any further, but it's obvious we have no choice but to beat him to his next destination and take him out there," she paused for a moment in thought and took a deep breath, " Louis used to be a part of the coven. He had a wife and seven kids, two daughters and five sons. However, a little over one-hundred and fifty years ago, his family was murdered by a group of humans who had discovered that they were vampires. I was told that they were burned to death by the human's they thought of as friends. Louis was enraged by this and committed an act we have forbidden against since the fall of the Egyptian empire; he drank dry the humans that had killed his family. He had been enraged that the coven would do nothing to carry justice out on those humans and so he saw it fit to do so himself. This only angered the coven and forced them to cast Louis out," Annette crossed and uncrossed her legs before continuing, "In return, this enraged Louis even more so but was silent as he left. That was, until now"

"But why is he attacking now?" Trish asked as she shifted her weight to her other leg.

Annette sighed solemnly before answering, "It's because…the leader that has been protecting everyone…the strongest of the coven…my father, has passed away just recently. The one that gave the order to banish him. I think he sees that as his opportunity to do what he wishes"

"So is that why he's holding a grudge against you now?" Dante remembered the hate Louis had shown without even trying to hide it, "He couldn't take out the old man so now he's just putting the blame on you"

Dark brown ringlets fell over her shoulders as Annette leaned forward slightly, her arms crossed in front of her stomach, "Probably, and my brother as well"

Dante waited a moment before asking another question, "You said back at the warehouse that it was a good thing I didn't shoot or I would have caught the ricochet. What exactly did you mean by that?"

"Another good question," she smiled grimly, "Every vampire develops some kind of power sometime in their life. Sometimes it's later, sometimes even as soon as the vampire is born. His trait is that his skin is as hard as diamonds. However, fire seems to be the only thing that affects him"

"How did you discover that?"

"Every family has the same characteristic weakness, regardless of their own power," Annette pointed out, "Just like my family's weakness is the rain"

"Do you think you should have told us that?" Dante smirked, "We might use it against you"

"Well, it's not like you can summon the rain at will," Annette stood up casually, allowing a small laugh, "And I don't think you'd use it against me anyway"

Trish looked outside for a moment before turning to her former partner, "Are you going to go with her, Dante?"

Dante looked at Annette, who seemed lonely for a moment, before scratching the back of his head, "I don't really have a choice. She's already paid me half. Plus, there's a nut-job of a vampire on the lose that needs to be stopped and put in a straightjacket. I'm going, and you Trish?"

"Would love to, but I have another job that needs to be done tomorrow and I'll probably be out for a few days," Trish replied. It was obvious that the case Dante was taking didn't really interest her either. She wasn't committed as his partner anymore, so she didn't feel guilty for refusing to go. The woman caught the usual look that appeared in Dante's eyes for just a moment; the look that told her he was thinking of his mother again, the woman she was created to resemble. However, as always, the look was gone in an instant.

"Just be careful Trish, not like I need to tell you that," Dante grinned

"That's right," she waved back with a smile as she walked out the door.

Annette watched as the beautiful blonde left before moving to the larger sofa and sitting down tiredly. If it hadn't been for the three day spree of no rest or a decent meal, she wouldn't have been so tired. Her eyelids felt heavy and her limbs were achy from constant movement from one place to another. Not to mention, she hadn't had a drop of blood to drink in weeks. Yes, they were still allowed to drink human blood; just not drink them dry.

"Are you alright?" Dante asked as he stood up from his desk

"Yeah, I'm just tired," she only told half the truth, "If you don't mind, I'd like to rest"

"What about when the sun-?"

She laughed weakly, "This isn't Dracula we're talking about here. The sun doesn't affect us, nor does garlic or crucifixes," She gestured to the cross she had around her neck. The small silver cross with a silver rose carved around it. The cliché of vampire weaknesses didn't irritate her. In fact, it made her want to laugh at how ridiculous it sounded. "Anyway, we can leave the day after tomorrow. I don't think Louis will be done for the next three days. Just like water for humans, if we have too much blood in one day it can kill us"

"What's the most you guys can drink in one day?"

"What we can have is equal to sucking two humans dry, which is what Louis is doing. That's why he kills no more than two," Annette replied, herself thirsting for blood. Her throat burned and her mouth was dry, but she said nothing of her discomfort.

"That explains why he won't get it done in one day," Dante mused, "Anyway, you can take the sofa tonight and get some shut eye." He shrugged of his coat and hung it on the coat hanger, grabbing a magazine from his desk shortly after, "If you need me, I'll be up in here," he gestured to the door on the left of his desk, "Just don't come and suck my blood in the middle of the night," he grinned.

Annette forced a smile at the jest; he had no idea how tempting that was at the moment, "Of course not. Not unless I have your permission anyway," the hunger and thirst for blood had her wishing he _would_ give her the permission. The silver haired man held his grin and shook his head at her comment before leaving through the door. Annette held her smile, watching Dante leave the door halfway open before ascending the steps on the other side. As soon as he was out of sight, the forced smile instantly faded as she put her face into her hands. '_I need blood…but I can't go out…not with Louis around. He's sure to find me_,' she hesitated before reaching into her pocket for her other option. A packet with one last pill in it rested in her slender hands as she looked down in disgust; Blood Pills. She hated the pills to no end since they tasted nothing like blood. They tasted more like vomit than anything else and Annette only used them when she really had to since she had a hard time keeping them down. In addition, the affects were only temporary and hardly worth the effort of trying to swallow one if you didn't need it. Annette popped the pill into her mouth as fast as she could and swallowed hard. If her will to keep the pill down at this moment wasn't as strong as it was, she more than likely would have vomited…meaning very bad news for both her and the only person in the building she could get blood from.

**************

He woke up to find Annette passed out on his sofa, using her coat as a blanket. He smirked before deciding on breakfast; leftover pizza and beer. Though, it couldn't exactly be considered breakfast since it was about noon, but what did he care? He was awake and this was his first meal of the day. Dante grabbed the food from the small fridge and sat down at his desk, looking back at Annette as he took a bite from his pizza. Should he wake her? His question was answered when the woman's cell phone began ringing. Messy ringlets flew up as she searched for her cell phone in a half-awakened panic.

"H-hello?" her voice was a little husky from just waking up.

Dante turned his attention away back towards his pizza and beer as Annette listened to the other end of the line.

"What did she say?" it didn't sound urgent and she seemed a little annoyed as she listened to the reply, "Jack, this couldn't wait until I got back?......And why not?......," she sighed irritably before pushing the 'end' button on her phone, "Honestly, as if this isn't the guys 20th marriage…what do they see in him?"

She set her phone down and stood up, leaving her coat on the sofa. Dante almost wanted to ask if she was being sarcastic about the amount of marriages that Jack had or if he really _did_ have that many.

"Sorry about that Dante. Anyway, I need to head out for a bit and I need you with me," Annette combed through her tangled hair with her hands and smoothed it down.

"To where?" Dante asked, stuffing the last of the pizza into his mouth and downing his beer before she replied.

"A…uh…blood bank," she replied, a small blush on her flawless face, "I haven't had…any in the last few weeks and I don't feel safe with Louis around this town"

Annette brushed some hair behind her ear, a silver earring sparkling in the sun shining through the windows.

"How are you getting in?" Dante asked as he grabbed his coat

"Back door," she smiled, "Just show me where a blood bank is and leave the rest up to me"

****************

They reached the nearest blood bank within minutes, much to Annette's delight. Dante promised her that he would wait for her near the building, just in case Louis decided to show up. Getting into the building was no problem and neither was getting into the freezer. All blood types were assorted accordingly, and she took some type A's since she found they tasted the best. With the cold packs of blood in her hands she began to make her way out but the door suddenly shut in front of her. Jamming the packs into her pocket, she looked around. Slowly, and like a cat stalking its prey, Louis emerged from behind one of the racks. Had he been waiting for her?

"Dear Annette, I had a feeling you would need to come here sooner or later," he paced in front of her, "However, you must know that Dante is pretty much useless against my power. I can't understand why you would bring him"

She scowled, "So, what? Are you going to try and kill me?"

"Tempting, but no. I'm here to tell you how I'm going to kill the coven," his angelic face was contorted into pure hatred, "That coven that does nothing against murderous humans!"

"This is crazy Louis," Annette shook her head

"Is it? Or is it that I am sane and the rest of you are lunatics?"

"Trust me buddy, you are far from sane," Dante burst through a wall with Rebellion, the icy air escaping through the opening he had made, "I had a feeling you were taking a little too long in here, Annette. Thought you were being really picky for a moment"

Louis clucked his tongue in annoyance, "You've already become a nuisance to me, Dante. Leave us and leave the matters between us immortals"

"Sorry blondie, can't do that. I'm getting paid to take out your crazy ass," Dante replied as he pointed his sword at the man.

People in the building began pounding on the outside of the door trying to get inside. Dante's entrance had more than likely alerted them that something was wrong. Louis said nothing more as he disappeared into thin air. Annette quickly unlocked the door for the humans on the other side and followed Dante out soon after. How exactly was Louis planning on killing all of those in the coven? There were at least three more with the power to summon fire and two with the power of diamond hard skin. All of them could easily take out Louis before he could even set foot into the mansion. Was the vampire really that crazy?

"Dante, I have to stop. I need to drink or I'm going to go crazy," Annette pleaded, stopping at an empty park with a fountain.

The silver haired man didn't think she was exaggerating about going crazy either. Her violet eyes had a hit of red in them and she looked starved. Dante stopped ahead of her and watched her rip off the top of one of the blood packs with a ferocity that seemed out of character for her. Annette poured the blood into her mouth and down her burning throat. It was instant relief after finishing the first pack. She opened up the second pack and downed that one just as quick. Some color returned to her face, not as pale as she was a moment ago.

"You ready to go?" Dante asked, not knowing what to really think about the sight of someone drinking two packs of blood

"Sure," she seemed embarrassed, and worried of what Dante thought of her now. The red tint had left her eyes and she seemed more alert than before. She tossed the two empty packs into the nearby trashcan, hoping that no one would notice them in there. A couple walked in between the small distance that was between Dante and Annette, not seeming to care about the odd pair. "I don't know what Louis is planning, but it can't be good. I don't think he's bluffing about what he means to do to the coven"

"What's your plan? That's what I want to know," Dante watched as Annette walked past him and sat on the edge of the fountain, "You ask me for help, but it seems to me that you're the only one that can take blondie out"

Sad violet eyes met questioning ice blue as Annette looked up, "I can't do it by myself. Its true that myself and a few other's hold his weakness but there is something that frightens me…something that Louis didn't mention," she looked away from the demon slayer and looked down at her reflection in the water, "There's something hidden up his sleeve and you might be the only one able to stop it"

"Any ideas?"

The woman nodded, "I think…he's going to summon demons to help in his cause"

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A.N. Hope this chapter isn't too boring and short lol. Thank you so much Deb-Kun for supporting me!!


	3. The Reason

Eight for the Outcast

Chapter 3: The Reason

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_I came to realization that I'm not going to disclaim anymore since everyone should know who owns DMC anyway!_

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Dante raised an eyebrow at Annette's statement. It wasn't the demons that had him puzzled; it was the fact that she seemed fearful of the demons. "Demons shouldn't be a problem for you guys, right?"

Long dark ringlets bounced as she shook her head, "You would think so. But the truth is that we have no means of protection against demons of any kind. Against them, we are mortals"

Now Dante was more confused than ever and Annette couldn't help but laugh at the look of confusion on his face.

"Dante, tell me, have you ever heard of vampires fighting demons at any point in your life?" she asked looking up at him

"No, but I never knew vampires were real until just recently"

Annette stood up from the fountain and brushed off her coat, "The point is that we can't beat them no matter how hard we try. Pure demon blood is like poison to us. If it's spilled, we go unconscious. If it touches us, we burn. If we drink it, we die. Simple as that" sparkling violet eyes returned to the demon slayers still slightly confused face, "Did you think vampires were all powerful? We may not have the cliché weaknesses that human's have come to believe we have, but we still have them"

He crossed his arms before returning her statement with another question, "So what if that so-called job I took last night had had an actual demon involved and not blondie? Why did you follow along if what you said is true?"

She looked away from him and then looked back, "I wanted to see if it _was_ true about the demons, or if it's just something to keep the coven trapped up inside that boring place," Annette sighed, "I lied about the coven trapping us inside to protect us from the humans. But hell! Keeping us inside that mansion to protect us from demons might be a lie!" she turned her body to Dante so she could fully face him, "I don't know how much I heard from The Elders is true. That's why I volunteered to go out into the world; not just to catch Louis but to see what I have been lied to about"

A grin spread across Dante's face, "A little rebellious, aren't you? I figured you for the type that went along with everybody else without question"

Instead of taking offense, Annette actually allowed herself to grin as well, "That mask has been a hard mask to wear, but I've done it for years and I'm sick of it"

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A few hours of aimlessly walking the city and seeing if they could catch a glimpse of Louise went by before Dante's stomach protested in hunger. They made their way to a small but cozy restaurant and sat down at one of the small round tables, the wooden chairs creaking under their weight from years of use. The smell of cigars, beer and rotting wood made its way to the two, but it wasn't unpleasant. Oddly, it made the place seem a bit cozier. Dante ordered a pizza with no olives and a beer while Annette ordered a salad with extra tomatoes and a small coke. The waiter, who seemed to be in his forties and probably the son of the owner, wrote the orders down and walked away without a word. Although, his gray eyes did linger on Annette for a moment longer before going into the kitchen to give the cook the order.

"There's going to be two men killed today," Annette glanced up at the small television set that was up above the bar area, half expecting to already see something about a new murder or two on the screen. However, the woman that Dante and herself had found last night and the man from the day before were the only ones on the news right now. The family and friends of the woman were being interviewed, and Annette wished that the humans would leave those in grief alone instead of interviewing them in their time of mourning. Sometimes, she just never knew why the humans do what they do. Common sense seemed to have skipped many of them. Her eyes saddened as she watched the distressed family try to form a sentence through their tears, the microphone an annoying object on the screen. She wasn't human, but Annette knew what it was like to have someone you loved dearly taken away from you so suddenly. "Some humans just have no respect for others" she muttered.

Dante looked away from the window, "huh?"

She shook her head and looked away from the screen, "It's nothing"

The demon slayer didn't press the subject but brought up a new one instead, "So how far away is this mansion you guys live in?"

"It's about five hours on motorcycle from this town…west of here," Annette seemed slightly distracted while answering, "However, my ride was stolen about two towns back"

"Here's the salad and drinks," the older man set the order on the table, "and your pizza is almost done"

"Thanks," Annette put on a pretend smile until the man turned away and she looked back at Dante, "You wouldn't happen to have a ride would you?"

He shook his head and shrugged, "Had one last week but a demon thought it to be a good idea to attack it instead of me"

Silence arose for a moment as Annette began picking at her salad, the condensation on her drink sliding down the glass and wetting the glossy table when it reached the bottom. Dante grabbed for his beer and gulped it down as if it was his last. The pizza came about a moment later, much to his delight. It was about that time that Annette's phone began to buzz.

"Yes?" she greeted nonchalantly but immediately perked up at the sound of the voice on the other side of the line, "Isaiah, is everything ok?....I see…." her gaze moved down towards her salad to avoid eye contact with Dante, who tried to seem uninterested with who it was she was talking to. "How's Maya taking it?....Mmm…She is a strong girl after all….Isaiah, I know this isn't a good time, but I need you to get me a ride," she looked out the window, a hollow laugh cutting through the short silence, "Well, the last one got stolen two towns back…." she blushed at some comment and looked at Dante a little embarrassed as if he had heard it, "I just left it for a second….It might have been them, they're always looking for ways to get back at me…Sure…" she waited.

"Is he able to get us a ride?" Dante asked, finishing the pizza

She brought a finger up, giving him the 'one moment' signal before speaking again, "You don't have to….sure sure, no problem. Just be here tomorrow, alright?....Love you, too"

Annette smiled as she ended the call, "Well, we have a ride. My younger brother will be picking us up and taking us there"

"_Two more bodies have just been found by the 'Siren's Den'. They were reported by the owner just minutes ago_," Annette looked up at the television quickly, not noticing the grin on Dante's face as a woman with jet black hair and emerald green eyes appeared on the screen, "_Did you see anyone suspicious before you found the bodies?_" the reporter asked urgently, the police in the far background standing around the bodies covered with blue tarp while another police man rolled out the plastic yellow band around some orange cones to keep out civilians.

"_No, I just walked out for some fresh air when I saw them lying by the front door_," her eyes shifted from the reporter to the camera, as if she knew some secret, "_If you ask me though, there is something bigger going on than just some sick prank_"

"_We will try to get more details on the situation that seems to be gripping every small city in terror,_" the reporter turned away from the Siren's Den owner, "_More on this new found murder at 5_"

"So, there's the third day of murders gone," Annette sighed and looked back at her salad, forcing herself to eat the meal, "If I knew where to find him, he'd be dead already and this wouldn't be happening"

Dante pulled his attention away from the screen as soon as the reporter and the owner of Siren's Den were off the screen, "Is that guy some kind of magician any way? It seems like he goes invisible as soon as he finishes what he wants"

"No one knows…but if he does have that trait, we are in for a lot more trouble than we realized"

"I was actually joking about the invisible part…you guys can actually have those kind of abilities?" Dante had a feeling he should ask what other kind vampire powers existed.

"Its just like how demons have their own special abilities," Annette said before popping a cherry tomato into her mouth, the juice spilling from the small fruit and filling her mouth. ("It's a vegetable!" she would to argue) She swallowed before continuing, "We can develop a countless number of abilities. Some of us can even turn into animals"

Violet eyes suddenly seemed to be hit with realization, "I'm such an idiot! We've been looking for him in human form. I've been so intent on finding him in that form that I've forgotten he has that ability"

"We're definitely screwed in that case then," Dante stood up from the seat, the wood creaking as he stood up, "I think our best bet is just to wait for him to show up at that mansion of yours. I'm not going to interrogate every stray in the city"

She mentally kicked herself a million times over as she stood up and followed Dante out, handing the older man the pay before she walked out. How could she have been so dumb as to forget that kind of information? She knew her younger brother was bound to give her a lecture if he found out about it, which was more than likely to happen. He knew when somebody was keeping something from him. Annette concentrated on the clicking of her heels against the sidewalk, trying her best to ignore how low her heart had sunk. Dante looked over his shoulder and saw the despaired look written plainly on her face. He scratched the back of his head, knowing he should say something but not knowing what. His mouth began to open to attempt to form a sentence, but it was she who opened her mouth first and changed the subject that was still in her mind.

"Will that woman be ok? The one from last night?" she asked, "Aren't you afraid that she could be targeted?"

"Trish?" Dante laughed "I definitely don't need to worry about her, she'll be fine. Trish is more than capable of protecting herself, I should know better than anyone"

"I see," she simply nodded, "I'm going to go out alone for the night to get some more blood, not from the same place though. I'll need it before we head back to the mansion tomorrow"

"Want me to show you another blood bank then?"

However, the word 'alone' sunk in and he realized what she intended.

"Oh," was all he could think to say

She nodded, "I don't think you want to see it…I don't want you to…"

Actually, Dante was more than interested to see what a vampire looked like when feeding. He wasn't going to say it out loud though; Annette had been embarrassed just by drinking those two blood packs in front of him today. Sure, it had thrown him off but he hadn't been disgusted by it in any way.

"Uh, sure…just be careful for blondie," he got out before she pushed off the ground and disappeared over a building.

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_A.N…this chapter was probably pointless beyond belief _XP _Plus, my chapters seem to be getting shorter. Gotta pick it up!!_

_I'll try to make the next one more interesting since nothing exciting has really been going on. I'm horrible when it comes to building up the plot *sigh* Oh! and for those of you who have read Emerald Eyes, you'll know who it was being interviewed by the reporter *sorry, just had to put my fave OC in here somewhere*_

_Thank you so much Tori-chan and Deb-chan!!!! I really appreciate you guys!_


	4. Greetings from Fortuna

Eight for the Outcast

Chapter 4: Greetings from Fortuna

(_yeah, I know, lame chapter name _XP)

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Dante just shrugged as Annette's lean figure disappeared from sight within seconds. A kid across the street, about the age of six, had been the only one to see her jump over the building and was now tugging at his mother's shirt trying to tell her what he saw. Of course, as any mother would when hearing a something as weird as a woman scaling a building, she just nodded and agreed but the son was determined to get her to believe him. The silver haired man shook his head and kind of felt sorry for the boy but said nothing in the child's defense. The poor kid would probably be insisting that he knew what he saw his whole life and no one would believe him.

Not even a minute after watching the child and mother disappear around the corner of the street, he decided that there was nothing better to do so he started heading back to the Devil May Cry. However, he didn't get far when Lady came riding up next to the sidewalk on her motorcycle and stopped, removing her helmet.

"Trish told me who was behind the Vampire Case," she started, running her hands through her short, dark hair, "Who knew vampires really existed?"

"Just make sure not to shoot the guy when you see him though, Lady," Dante informed, but she more than likely already knew about the lunatic of a vampire's ability.

"After what Trish told me, I don't think I'll make that mistake. By the way, where's the vampire who's staying at your place," she looked around, trying to see if she was hiding anywhere behind him.

Dante shook his head, "She had to go out for the night alone. Why? Looking to be a donor?"

She sighed irritably, "No, dumbass, I just wanted to get a look at her before I head out of town. There's a small demon hole that's about to open up around where I heard she lives, and I wanted to make sure she knew about it just in case"

"She had a feeling that was going to happen," Dante returned, not surprised by the news in the least, "Just make sure to try and keep that hole sealed as long as possible"

Lady grinned, "Like you have to tell me that. See you around Dante"

The young woman put the helmet back on over her head and fired up the engine. She gave the demon slayer a quick wave before speeding off. '_Why do I have this feeling that I'm going to be charged for that_?' Dante sighed inwardly, but tried to force himself not to think about how much Lady was going to be charging for keeping that hole sealed for him. Was there anything she did free of charge? The question wasn't hard to answer and it was more than likely 'no'.

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She pressed her body against the victim who was up against the brick wall of the alleyway where not even the moon could shine. Blood dripped from the two puncture wounds on his neck from which she quickly began drinking from. The man was moaning with pleasure but she paid no attention to it since she needed to get done fast. Annette had his hands pressed against the wall since he had tried to grope her earlier when she had first started to drink from him; she wanted none of that even though drinking his blood sent her the same pleasures. Stopping before it was too late, she pulled away from him and let him slump to the ground with a glazed look and sweat all over his face. The puncture wounds would heal quickly and wouldn't even be visible by the time he came around. In fact, he wouldn't even remember what had happened.

With pleasure threatening to overpower her will, she turned away from her victim and set her mind on returning to the Devil May Cry before pleasure could win. She wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth with a handkerchief as she exited the alleyway and passing a few drunks as she did. Ignoring the drunks trying to coo her with slurred words, Annette made it away from the street that contained most of the nightlife. It was quiet now with the exception of the siren going off in the background a few blocks down and the sight of the full moon seemed to calm her. However, she wasn't far down the empty street when her phone began to buzz, making her wish she had '_accidentally_' left it at the Devil May Cry. Annette answered it anyway since it was more than likely her brother calling.

"Yes?"

"_Annette, mother just told me something I think you should try out_," Isaiah seemed a little excited.

"What is it?"

"_That Dante guy is a half-blood, right?_" he asked

"Yeah, but what does that have to do-?"

"_Mother told me that if you drink from a half-blood you can temporarily take on demons without the usual weaknesses us vampires have when we shed their blood_," Annette could almost see the excited smile on her younger brother's face, "_Annette, if you drink Dante's blood, you can stand against Louis AND the demons!"_

"Isaiah…" Annette, despite the pleasing news, couldn't help but find a fault in the plans, "…by myself?"

There was a pause and she knew her brother's smile had dropped. The idea of drinking Dante's blood was more than tempting, but the idea of taking on everything alone was ridiculous.

"_Well, you can still have Dante help fight. I mean, we did hire him didn't we_?" she heard Isaiah sit down on what was probably his bed.

"If I drink his blood, he won't be in any shape to fight, brother. Besides, where did mother get that information?" Annette watched a car drive by, clearly over the speed limit.

"_I have no idea, but I thought I'd tell you just in case you wanted to try it…well, I actually do want you to_," he muttered the last bit.

His sister sighed silently as she stopped under a streetlight, "Brother, I have something I need you to do, but no one can know of it"

"_What is it_?"

"Go down into the basement and read up on demons…I want to know if it is true what they say. Just don't let The Elders know what you are researching if they ask"

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The door creaked open before he heard the stiletto heels against the wooden floor, knowing who it was before he even looked up from the magazine in his gloved hands. Her face seemed to have more color now and her cheeks even had a rosy tint. Violet eyes seemed even more alive than when he had first seen her; obviously drinking from a live human was better than getting blood from the blood bank.

"Things should go a little smoother on my end now," was all she said as she strode over to the sofa and sat down with legs crossed, "Cold blood just doesn't cut it when you really need the job done."

Her words hid what she really wanted to say. Annette avoided eye contact as she shrugged off her coat, as if he had seen what she had done that night. Dante opened his mouth to give her the information Lady had left him with before his old fashioned rotary phone rang, cutting him off. Annette watched him pick it up, straightening out her dress as she did so. Dante greeted with the usual 'Devil May Cry' introduction before listening to who he thought was a client at first.

"Police department?" Dante thought for a moment that the police were going to accuse him of something. He might have gone overboard on a lot of missions and damaged a lot of buildings 'accidentally', but he'd never done anything illegal. Annette was beginning to think just that, shaking her head and sighing silently. However, Dante chuckled after hearing the police chief out. Confused, the woman sitting on the sofa raised an eyebrow and eyed Dante with question. Dante agreed to meeting there and hung up.

"What is it?" she asked

"Just someone I know who was at the wrong place at the wrong time"

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Dante strode into the police department, earning some suspicious gazes from some of the younger officers as he made his way to the man with a hawk-like nose leaning next to a door frame. Annette ignored the gazes that moved from Dante to her, their gazes turning from suspicious to perverted.

"When we brought him in, he said to call for you to prove false the charges against him," the man led them away from the main entrance to the interview room. He opened the door and let Dante and Annette walk in before him. A young man with a mop of silver hair and icy blue eyes looked up at Dante before he glanced at Annette. The chief walked in after the first two and closed the door behind him. "He was found lurking around a recent murder victim, with these weapons. The blood was drained just like the others"

He gestured to the revolver with a blue rose pattern and a sword with a handle like that of a motorcycle gear shift. The weapons were unique and beautiful, and probably just as deadly. Annette didn't know the man, but she couldn't help but pity him for being suspected. Even when it was obvious he couldn't have committed the crime with the weapons he was carrying.

"And how do you think he could pull off a crime like that with those weapons?" Annette spoke as if she were getting onto a child accusing his sibling of writing on the walls, when the sibling clearly didn't know how to write yet, "Just because he was found there doesn't mean he committed a crime"

"Hey, Dante, who's she? A new partner of yours?" the young man asked, being in custody of the police not affecting him at all.

"Hey chief, this isn't your guy. The guy you're looking for isn't even human," Dante stated, "Besides, this kid wouldn't even know how to begin to pull off a stunt like those murders"

It didn't take too long for the police to release custody of the silver haired boy, who Annette could swear that he could be related to Dante. She was curious about their history, but she didn't feel it was her place to ask. They stopped outside the station at the bottom of the steps before all three turned to face one another.

"By the way kid, this is Annette," Dante started, "She hired me to go after the guy who started this whole blood draining"

"I'm Nero," the boy greeted, his expression quickly turning to that of hatred "and that maniac killed eight people in Fortuna!"

"Fortuna? You came all this way to track him?" Annette had heard the name before, but only once, and the news about what happened there wasn't pleasing

"Why wouldn't I? I'm gonna kill that bastard for what he did!"

"Calm down kid," Dante pat Nero on the shoulder once, "Your girlfriend's alright isn't she?"

"Kyrie is fine," Nero mumbled, "But the point is that-"

Annette shifted her weight, purposely making her heel click against the sidewalk to get attention, which she got from Nero, "Do not think that your city has been the only one affected by this situation. Going after the killer with fury will only blind you and you could end up hurting yourself. Besides, none of your weapons would work against him. His only weakness is fire"

It was then she took a little more notice of the boy's right arm resting in a sling. '_What is he doing going after someone when he has a broken arm?_' Nero studied Annette and looked at Dante, "Is she even human, Dante?"

"Far from it kid," he replied with a grin, "She's a vampire"

"A…vampire?" Nero glanced at Annette, thinking that it was some kind of a joke, "Is the guy that killed all those people a vampire too?"

"A demon didn't do it, so yes," she put her hands into the pockets of her black leather trench coat, "His name is Louis and he used to be part of the coven I came from. He's out for revenge from what I've been told, but I think he's out to summon demons as well to kill the coven"

"Can't you-?" Nero began, but was cut off. Annette knew what the question was going to be anyway, even before Dante interrupted him.

"That reminds me, Lady told me that there was a hole opening up around where the coven is. She's on her way to keep it sealed for as long as possible. You're theories were right," he informed, ignoring the annoyed look coming from Nero for being interrupted.

Annette couldn't help but feel worried about the news. After all, she didn't know whether or not the weaknesses she was told vampires had against demons was actually true. Her thoughts suddenly brought an image of her drinking from Dante's neck, which she tried her best to shake away.

"I see," Annette nodded, "But it shouldn't be a problem if we get there by tomorrow"

Nero didn't waste time breaking the short silence that arose afterwards, "Dante, can we get back to your place? This sling is really bugging me"

"Your arm isn't broken?" Annette asked before Dante could answer.

"Nah," he replied, "I just have to wear when I go out to places like this or people will freak out"

Dante grinned and motioned for the two to follow him, "Lets get back and he can show you. Besides, it's getting kind of cold out here and a beer sounds nice right about now"

*************

Irritated with the sling, Nero removed it to prove that his arm was far from broken. However, to quench Annette's curiosity he pulled up his sleeve as Dante grabbed a beer from the small fridge. Her eyes widened, letting out a small gasp as the glowing blue instantly became visible under a scale-like armor on his arm.

"It's amazing!" she commented as he held his arm out for her to see. Dante couldn't help but smile at the pleased look that appeared on Nero's face as Annette continued to comment on how unique and amazing his arm was. About an hour after some small talk, Annette had fallen asleep on the larger of the two sofas and Nero had fallen asleep, arms crossed and sitting up with his head lolled to the side, on the smaller sofa. Dante knew the kid had to be exhausted after making his way all the way from Fortuna, and by the looks of it, he had probably walked here too. He wanted to send Nero back, but it would probably hurt his pride if the kid went back to Kyrie without so much as lifting a finger to get his revenge. In addition, it would probably be convenient to have another person to help fight off the demons.

But would Nero feel comfortable around a whole mansion of vampires?

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_A.N. Well, it's a little longer than the last chapter. And, still, nothing really interesting has happened…I hope you readers aren't getting to board with this. Don't worry, it'll pick up. I'm still trying to get everything set up so the twists I have planned make sense. I think this might be just as long, or shorter, than Emerald Eyes. However, if I am able to think of something else, it might be longer. *shrugs*_

_Thanks to Tori-chan! It was only because we worked together on previous writings that I was able to improve!_

_Thanks to Deb-kun! If it weren't for you, this story would have never happened!_

_TheMovieGuy! Thank you for your support!_

_CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM PLEASE!!!!_


	5. I Hate Tuxedos

Eight for the Outcast

Chapter 5: I Hate Tuxedos

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It was barely noon when the sound of a purring motor made the floor of the Devil May Cry slightly rumble before the ignition was cut off. A tall man stepped out of the expensive looking car that looked like it wasn't even on the market yet. Amethyst colored eyes glanced up at the shop name under a shock of brown hair. The hair that wasn't framing his face was tied back loosely with a black band. He had a simple gray turtle-neck sweater on with faded jeans and converse. He looked to be in his late teen years, but his eyes held wisdom beyond that. Without hesitating further, he locked the car with the small remote on the key ring and walked up the steps gracefully. The young man didn't even pause to knock; he simply opened the door and stepped inside to see two figures asleep on the sofas and a man in a red coat with a beer can in his hand.

"You must be the ride," Dante assumed, although knowing he was right since he could clearly see the resemblance between the young man and his sister Annette.

"That's right," his voice was kind yet strong at the same time. He looked over at Annette and smiled when he saw her ringlets splayed around her head. "Has she given you any trouble?"

"Nope," was all Dante said before gulping down the last of the beer and crushing the can.

"By the way, I'm Isaiah, her younger brother. But you probably knew that already," he didn't bother to walk across the office and hold out his hand. Instead he looked over at Nero, who was still sleeping, "If you are Dante, who is he?"

"The kid? His name's Nero. He's coming along with us since that Louis guy made a stop by his hometown too"

"I see," Isaiah studied Nero, more so his arm, before going over to Annette to wake her, "Annette…sister, wake up. I made it here"

He shook her for a moment; fortunately she wasn't a heavy sleeper. She was awake after about two shakes before her violet eyes caught sight of her brother. A huge smile grew on her face, looking like a child for that instant, before she threw her arms around him.

"I missed you Isaiah," she whispered in his ear before pulling away, "You are here early though"

"The grand party in honor Nyx is tonight," Isaiah informed quietly as Dante tried to wake Nero up, "Despite what is going on with Louis, they still want to hold it in fear that the goddess will be angry"

"But what about them?" she gestured to Dante and the still sleeping Nero

"They are going to have to attend or The Elders will think that they have no respect for us and send them away, regardless of whether we need their help or not," Isaiah continued in a low voice.

Annette couldn't help but shake her head while thinking about The Elders, "I'm pretty sure Nyx would understand the situation previously at hand. The Elders might just get us killed"

Isaiah simply shrugged and smirked, looking younger than he actually was when he did so, "Who knows"

Annette stood up and shrugged her coat on over her violet and black lace dress, her brother standing up afterwards and towering over her with his height.

"Kid!" Dante attempted to get the kid up once more and finally succeeded when Nero began to stretch and yawn, "Sheesh, kid. If I hadn't known better, I'd think you were in a coma"

Nero scratched the back of his head, trying to bid the sleepiness away, "Yeah, well, you try walking all the way from Fortuna to here with hardly any break"

"Couldn't get a car?"

"No, and I wasn't going to steal one either," was the reply before he stood up and noticed the new face in the room.

Annette noticed Nero's slightly hesitant gaze and decided that introductions were probably best, "Nero, this is my younger brother, Isaiah. He's our ride to the coven"

The two simply acknowledged each other but nothing more. Isaiah looked over Nero's arm once more before turning away to look at his sister. Nero pulled down the sleeve of his jacket over his glowing arm, wanting to say something but kept it to himself. Annette ignored this and continued speaking, more so towards Dante than the other two.

"If everyone is ready right now, we should leave now. The sooner we get there the better," she began, not mentioning Nyx's grand party, "Grab all the weapons you want and meet my brother and I outside"

Annette followed her brother out through the large doors as Nero watched with a mix of emotions. Dante ignored the kid as he picked up the weapons he usually carried around: Ebony, Ivory and Rebellion. Nero grabbed the only two weapons he had as well: the Blue Rose and the Red Queen. The young man hesitated to go out the door as Dante grabbed a cold beer for the road.

"Hey, are you ok kid?" Dante asked, finally acknowledging Nero's lack of enthusiasm

"Its just kind of weird, about the vampires 'n all," he admitted

"Yeah, I thought so too. But, they aren't like the ones you see in the Hollywood movies…well, not all of them anyway," Dante replied, "Anyway, lets get going. If you're too scared, you can always go back"

"I'm not scared!" Nero protested, "I'm going with you"

********

The road trip that should have lasted four hours only took two thanks to the car Isaiah was driving. For one, they hadn't come across any highway patrol. It wouldn't have mattered if they had anyway since the car could easily outrun the cops. In addition to the speed, the closer they got to the coven, the less people there were on the road. The closer they got, the more trees began to line the road and tower of them with their majestic height. The road became a little eerie before there was a clearing and a mansion ('_understatement, that's a castle_,' Dante thought to himself) could be seen perched up on the hill. Roses crept up the side of the stony walls and well trimmed shrubs lined the walkway. Dante and Nero got out of the car after the siblings and took in the massive size of the place. Annette glanced up towards the window of her room that was up on the third floor to see a calico cat sitting in the window sill and staring down at her.

"Sasha knows we've made it," she smiled as the cat jumped down from the window sill. Annette turned to the two silver haired men behind her, "Let's go. I'm pretty sure you two are hungry. Just tell me what you'd like and I'll have the chef prepare it"

"Pizza please, just no olives," Dante didn't hesitate to place his order

"I'll, uh, just have what he's having," Nero answered, not sure if he was really hungry or not.

Annette nodded with a smile, gesturing for the two to follow her inside. Her brother called out saying that he was going to go park the car and catch up with her. The three walked along the red brick walkway as the two men looked around, noticing some cats roaming around the area. One of them brushed by Annette's leg with affection before taking off when it took notice of Dante and Nero. The dark wooden door that was the entrance seemed a bit intimidating and the large handles made the two men feel as if they had shrunk a few feet. Annette stopped in front of these doors, hesitating before turning to face the men behind her with a stern look in her eyes.

"Even though our coven has sworn off drinking anyone dry, that doesn't stop them from drinking in general. There will be those of my kind who have gone a few weeks without drinking inside, and they will be thirsty. Stay close to me and ignore those that try to lure you in. Avoiding eye contact is the best way to ignore them, understand?" she informed, waiting for the nod that she received from both of them before she turned back to the door, "Good"

Despite the door's large appearance, it wasn't hard for Annette to open it at all. Light violin music could be heard as they stepped into the hallway lined with doors to various rooms and paintings from every possible era hanging from the walls. After further walking in, it was apparent that the main hallway also led to small ones that were lined with doors and paintings as well. At the end of the hall, there was a large staircase with intricate carvings covering the railings.

"What is this area?" Dante asked as he looked back at the rooms

"This is where the coven sleeps. But my room is upstairs, along with my brother's and my mother's, since father was the leader of the coven," Annette took a moment to scan the rooms, memories flooding her mind for an instant before she bid them away, "The whole top floor belongs to my family and The Elders. The second floor is the ballroom and the kitchen"

She made notes as they ascended the steps all the way to the top, pointing out things here and there like a tour guide. After what seemed like an eternity of climbing the stairs, the three finally made it to a single black door at the end of the hallway at the top.

"Feel free to put your weapons where ever you'd like. There's two extra beds in my room that you can use for tonight," Annette turned the knob and pushed open the door to reveal a large room containing three king sized beds. A stained glass window depicting roses against a black and clear background took up most of the wall on the opposite side of the door. The room smelled of roses as well, making it obvious that the coven was fond of that flower. Dante and Nero both stood by the door, not knowing what to think of the lavish room.

"Why are there to extra beds in your room?" Dante asked

Annette said nothing for a moment as she shrugged off her jacket and laid it on the bed closest to the stained glass window, a calico cat jumping up onto the bed and curling up at the same instant her jacket landed on the bed, "I…used to have two sisters whom I shared a room with. They were the first of Louis' victims," she replied as she stroked the cat a few times.

Nero looked at the beds and felt guilty about sleeping in them, but then wondered to himself why she had kept them all this time. Looking at beds where you loved ones used to lie couldn't be anything but depressing. However, not wanting to seem like he didn't want a place to sleep, he set his stuff near the last bed as Dante did the same with the bed in the middle.

"Oh," Annette's mood changed instantly, "So, how do you two feel about tuxedos?"

Dante and Nero shared a hesitant glance before looking back at Annette, who seemed to be hiding something.

"Why?" Nero asked, stealing the word right out of Dante's mouth.

She sighed before sitting down, cross legged, on her bed, "Well, tonight is supposed to be the grand ball for Nyx, the goddess of the night, and you two are going to have to attend or you are going to be kicked out by The Elders for being disrespectful"

"Why didn't you mention this before we left?" Dante asked.

"No reason," she said, which was the truth, "Oh, I almost forgot about your food. I'm going to go let the chef know. My brother will be up shortly and will let you know where the tuxedos are"

********

Dante stood near Annette's room, looking uncomfortable in his black tux with a red vest underneath. He wished he had had time to enjoy his pizza little more before, but Annette was impatient and wanted him to change ASAP. Nero wore the same expression in his black tux with a deep blue tie tucked underneath, wishing that he could wear his usual clothes. On his hands were white gloves in order to hide his Devil Bringer from the others. He felt even more awkward since he had to leave his weapons behind in the room, but it was for the best since they didn't want to seem like they were scared of the rest of the coven. Isaiah soon appeared out his room, which was next door to his sisters, in his black tux with a long coat. He seemed a lot more regal than he had been in his gray turtle neck and jeans moments ago.

"Annette still isn't ready?" he asked.

"No," Dante answered, "I'm starting think she forgot about us"

Isaiah sighed before walking to stand in front of his sister's room and knocked on the door, "Sister, are you ready? We are going to be late"

"Just some last touches," came the muffled reply before the door finally opened. There, in the doorway, stood a breathtaking woman. Annette stood in a midnight blue, silk dress that hugged her torso until it reached her hips and then flowed out. It was sleeveless with a sweetheart neckline that showed just enough cleavage to catch some attention, but not enough to turn her into a slut. Her dark curls were pinned up with jewels that sparkled in even the dimmest light. "Ready"

"What took you so long?" Isaiah asked like a typical brother, "I've been ready for the past half hour, waiting for you"

Annette crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow, "Last time I checked, brother, you didn't have hair and makeup to do"

Isaiah only grinned and shook his head, "Anyway, we should be getting downstairs before mother complains"

Dante and Nero followed behind the siblings silently, trying to get over the discomfort of wearing a tuxedo. They headed down the steps to the second floor without a word, where a young woman stood at the bottom in a crimson gown. Her blonde hair shimmered as she turned her head to reveal radiant blue eyes, smiling when she saw who was coming towards her.

"I'm so glad you've made a safe return Annette," she slightly bowed her head to Annette and her sibling before regarding the two men that stood behind, "Who are they?"

"This is Dante and Nero," Isaiah informed, "And, no, you can't have them"

The blonde headed woman pouted her red lips, "You're no fun"

She flipped her hair over her shoulder and walked away; obviously she wasn't interested in what she couldn't have. Her petite figure disappeared into the crowd of beautiful vampires in extravagant gowns and tuxedos. Annette shook her head before looking back at the two silver headed men, "That's Pandora, try not to end up alone with her or I'll never find you two again"

She eyed Dante as she watched him nod his head in response and then watched Nero nod his head as well. '_I just hope everyone is on their best behavior tonight…I couldn't handle it if someone decided to have a meal_,' Annette looked up at her brother and nodded before gesturing to the other two to follow them into the ball room.

"Remember, no eye contact unless I say its ok," she whispered before entering the crowd, "Just face the stage up front when The Elders come out"

As if on cue, the lights in the room dimmed save for the ones near the stage area. Everyone's attention turned towards the front simultaneously and all voices hushed. Nero looked around nervously before he too looked towards the stage. Three figures with long graying hair emerged onto the stage, their faces hardly showing their true ages as their hair did. The tallest one in the center raised his hands above his head and smiled.

"My children!" his voice echoed throughout the ball room without the aid of a sound system, "Tonight we celebrate Nyx! The beloved goddess of the night! In her honor, eat, drink and be merry!"

The lights turned back on to their full luminosity as murmurs began throughout the crowd of vampires. Many wondered why the speech was too short as others wondered about the murders still going on in the outside world.

"Hmm, usually the speech is about ten minutes," Annette mused.

She looked up at Isaiah for an answer, but he only shrugged being that he was just as puzzled.

"We don't have to dance do we?" Dante changed the subject

Trying not to think too much about the speech being too short, she smiled sweetly at Dante, "Why, you don't want to dance with me?"

"It's not me, it's just that the kid looks nervous," Dante lied with a grin

"I am not!" Nero argued, but it was true nevertheless

"He doesn't," Annette couldn't help but giggle at Nero's expression, "But you do, Dante. It will make a good impression on The Elders"

Dante scratched the back of his head and sighed, "Alright, but I'm charging you for this too"

"Sure," she laughed lightly.

Nero watched as Dante walked away with Annette holding his wrist so he wouldn't back out of the dance.

"If you want, there are snacks on the tables in the back," Isaiah pointed towards the long row of tables lined up against the wall in the back.

"I'm good, thanks"

The tall vampire nodded before speaking again, "If you want to go somewhere, just let me know so I can follow. Annette wishes for me to make sure no harm comes to you"

Nero nodded, wishing that he would have stayed at Fortuna with Kyrie. Since Dante was part of the mission, he didn't see any reason to be here. However, he felt that he had to play his part in getting revenge for those who had been murdered by Louis.

****

Dante placed one hand on Annette's small waist and the other in her own hand, and hoped that he wouldn't make a fool out of himself and trip or something like that. He felt awkward in the position he was in being that he hadn't danced the waltz since his father had taught him and his brother when they were small. "_You never know when it could come in handy_," his father, Sparda, had said to him and his twin. Well, he was right. But he had probably never thought that Dante would be needing it for a vampire's grand party.

"You aren't too bad," Annette commented, keeping her gaze away from his neck, "You're a little rusty, but you dance better than most"

"Yeah, its just a little something my dad taught my brother and me," he shrugged, ignoring the gazes that he could feel on his back from some of the other vampires.

Annette opened her mouth to speak, but was silenced by a rumble that came from below. Everyone stopped moving and the music ceased to play as they listen to the rumbles grow louder and louder every few seconds. It sounded like something huge coming up the steps and it didn't sound friendly at all. Dante knew what it was all too soon and didn't allow himself a grin just yet.

"Nero, go get our weapons!" he called out, "And quick! A demon's on his way"

Nero didn't hesitate to dash out of the room in time to miss the panicked cries that started to come from the vampires once they heard the word 'demon'. Panicked, they began making their way towards an exit behind the stage. Annette didn't move from her spot and looked up at Dante sternly, "I'm staying"

"But what about-?"

"I'm going to find out if what they say is true," was her firm reply

Isaiah turned to his sister, "I do not intend to stop you so I'll be watching from afar sister, but I will not let anything harm you"

Isaiah was out of sight the same instant a large beast broke through the floor of the ball room and was flying overhead with its black wings. It looked down at Dante and Annette with its large red eyes before landing on the opposite side those two stood. The raven-like creature shrieked, sounding like thousands of nails clawing down a chalkboard.

"_You face me without weapons? Imbeciles!_" it spoke

"They just haven't arrived yet, that's all," Dante responded as Nero burst in with weapons in hand, tossing Dante his respective weapons, "See?"

Both men shrugged off the tuxedo coats and then held their blades ready.

"_You will die here you fools and then I'll eat the others_"

"I won't let you!" Annette glared at the beast and let the flames she had been gifted with engulf her hands.

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_A.N…It's actually longer this time! Woo Hoo! And the story is finally getting that battle, though more than likely short, it needs. _

_For this chapter, I felt it needed a party since I wanted Annette to get dressed up and Dante and Nero to be wearing tuxedos. Pandora will be making another appearance as well =D_

_Oh, and is Isaiah too boring? _

_Tori-kun, Deb-kun, and TheMovieGuy: Thank you all so much!_

_If you had never asked if I was going to be working on another story Deb-kun, this story would have never started. So, thank you!_

_CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM PLEASE!!_


	6. Moment of Truth

Eight for the Outcast

Chapter 6: Moment of Truth

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The winged beast eyed Annette with its crimson eyes, "_You are a vampire, and yet you do not run_?"

"I have no reason to when you threaten friends and family," was her reply.

It cackled before lifting up into the air, looking down at Dante, Nero and Annette, "_I thought I'd have a feast, but I have a battle instead. How amusing. Let's take this outside shall we?_"

The trio standing in the broken ball room watched as the raven-like demon flew through a wall to outside, making yet another hole in the once beautiful room. Annette let the flames on her hands die away as Dante shrugged, resting his blade on his shoulder, "Might as well do as he says, it'd be a lot more fun that way anyway"

"Are you sure just one of us couldn't take him down?" Nero asked, "He looks pretty weak if you ask me"

Dante nodded, taking a glance at Annette before answering, "We need to see if she has a weakness against the blood of a demon. We are just here to make sure we can get her out of there if it is true"

Annette allowed a small smile as she walked towards the enormous hole in the wall, "Thanks, both of you. Let's go"

She was the first to jump from the second story, landing on her heeled feet with her dress billowing around her. Wishing she had time to change, she stood up to glance at the demon circling the castle like a vulture. Dante looked down before making his jump, followed by Nero. The three suddenly heard the bone chilling screeching from up above before many pairs of red eyes became apparent from the forest that surrounded the castle. The demon circling over head then landed near this forest with a sneer that was almost apparent on his beak, obviously pleased that he had had the trio fooled about him being the only demon there. Subconsciously, Annette backed away one step. '_What if it is true? I can't die now!_' she thought worriedly, but then narrowed her eyes and thought firmly, '_No! I will prove The Elders wrong! I will not die!_'

Dante whistled as he counted the demons, "Can't really complain about these odds. Though, the others look even more pathetic than the head one"

The larger demon landed in front of his comrades, suddenly taking on the form of a tall human with shaggy black hair and piercing red eyes, holding onto a black sword with three separate blades connected to the hilt, "I think things will be more interesting in this form"

"What about the rest of your buddies?" Dante gestured towards the red eyes still peering from the surrounding forest.

"Them? They're just a barrier to make sure you don't run away," the demon looked back at the others for a brief moment before turning his attention to Annette, "I'll give you one last chance to run away, well, at least a head start to try"

"Not going to happen," she turned towards the two men behind her, "Only interfere if you need to, alright?"

"Sure thing," Dante grinned.

"No problem," Nero nodded.

Annette smiled warmly as thanks before turning away to look at the demon that had closed some of the distance between them. She said nothing as she closed some of the distance herself before standing there and letting the slight breeze that drifted through catch the ends of her dress. At that moment, she looked like a goddess ready to take on anything. Even without a weapon in hand, she still held a strong presence. However, inside the fear that she could possible die was in the back of her mind.

"What is your name and who summoned you?" Annette asked

"My name is Zephyros," he grinned and then pointed his three bladed sword at Annette, "As for who summoned me, that will not be answered by myself"

Flames sparked to life around Annette's hands, holding them away from her dress, and narrowed her glowing violet eyes at Zephyros. The demon threw his head back and laughed aloud, "You can't be serious, can you? You think to defeat me with just those flames of yours?"

Annette let a mischievous grin play upon her lips, "You haven't even seen what I can do with these flames of mine and yet you are already mocking my power"

Zephyros only sneered before he practically flew from where he was standing and was above Annette with his sword pointed down at her. Instantly, Annette sent a stream of flames towards him that almost resembled a dragon in form. The dark haired demon dodged to the side and landed with his back to Dante and Nero. Deciding that staying on the ground might be better, Zephyros darted forward at an incredible speed. However, he was slow in the eyes of a vampire. Annette stepped to the side, letting Zephyros stab through the air where she was previously standing. He was stunned for a brief moment and Annette took that opportunity to grab a hold of his wrist, preventing him from swinging his sword. Powerless against her surprising strength, he couldn't pull away from her as she set his arm aflame. The demon cried out in pain and dropped the sword that he had been holding onto firmly.

The vampire watched as Zephyros backed away cradling his arm. If the weakness against blood was true, it wasn't apparent yet. She hadn't really drawn blood anyway. Zephyros' comrades moved in a few steps away from the forest they had been concealed in, ready to attack should their leader fall. Zephyros put the hand that wasn't injured up to stop their advanced as he glared at Annette.

"You are too slow, not even worth my time or effort," Annette put her weight on one leg and let the flames on her arms die out, "Of course, it makes sense if you were sent just to chase my clan out of the mansion and kill them. After all, vampire's fear demons, right? I guess I threw your plan off when I decided to stay and fight"

Zephyros snarled at her statement before he shed his human skin and took flight with a now injured wing, "_You will die!_"

"What a pathetic statement," Annette stated before noticing the three bladed sword still laying on the grass next to her.

The demon's comrades took notice of her intentions and swarmed towards her with claws bared. Annette picked up the blade as Zephyros came down on her as well from above. Trying not to seem overwhelmed by the amount of demons, she bit back the urge to call for help. The smaller demons made it to her first but were kept back with the flames that came back to Annette's free hand. Zephyros wasn't far and made it to her in less than a second for her to spare. She slashed towards him with his own blade, only grazing him on his chest as he flew back with his wounded wing.

Then came his blood. Even from just that small wound, it poured profusely. Time seemed to slow in that instant as Annette waited for the feeling of being faint or anything worse. But she felt nothing; in fact, more than anything, she wanted to drink that blood and absorb the power it held. Her head started spin as she held back that desire, gripping the three bladed sword hard enough to turn her knuckles white. Dante and Nero, however, both noticed the slightly lustful look in her eyes as she spun to take care of some of the lesser demons with the sword she carried. Zephyros cried out as his comrades fell one by one before noticing a semi-crazed look in Annette's violet eyes. Not knowing what was the cause of that, he swooped down towards her anyway. A mad smile spread her lips before she lit the blade with her flames.

"Come and embrace death demon!" she called out and raised the flaming sword above her head.

The moment she leapt up from the ground was the moment Zephyros had felt fear for the very first time when facing a vampire. They had always feared demons because of their blood but why was this one facing him and not showing any sign of weakness? His thoughts came to an abrupt stop as all three blades from his now flaming sword pierced his body. Zephyros saw the woman licking her lips as she ceased the flames and blood began pouring out from his fatal wound.

"How?" was all he could get out before he fell hard to the ground with a sickening thud.

"Because I seek the truth," Annette replied with the crazed look still in her eyes.

Zephyros didn't quite understand, but it meant nothing since his existence was no more in seconds. The corpses of his comrades turned to dust and blew away not long after his death, his own corpse following suite a moment after. Annette looked down at the blood covered blades and didn't know if she could will her self to toss the sword aside. The blood was more tempting than a human's and could more than likely give her a lot more pleasure as well.

"Annette, are you ok over there?" Dante called out to her, but she didn't reply "Annette!"

She blinked away the crazed look and tossed the blade as far away as she could into the forest, hoping she would never see it again.

"Yes?" Annette turned back to Dante, and Nero who had seemed to be holding his breath when he let out an apparent sigh. He was probably getting a little worried about the woman's bloodlust a moment ago.

"Are you ok?" Nero asked

"I'm fine and it's obvious that the weakness against a demon's blood is false," she wasn't sure if she should walk towards them right now since the hunger for a demon's blood was still lingering like a shadow, "I think….we should go talk to mother. She wasn't at the party, and it worries me now"

"Do you think she knows something important?" Dante asked, picking up Rebellion, which he had stabbed into the ground earlier, and placed it where it belonged on his back.

Annette nodded, noticing her brother was now standing by the gaping whole in the side of the mansion, "Brother speaks to her more than I do, but it's obvious she's been keeping something from us to protect us"

She motioned for the two to follow her back up into the mansion through the damaged wall and waited for them to follow suite as she stood next to her brother, "She's still in her room isn't she?"

"As always, I didn't think she'd go to the party from the beginning," Isaiah replied, "You should know that by now"

His sister shook her head as Dante and Nero came to stand closer to them, "She's just lucky she hasn't been kicked out of here yet"

***************************************

Dante and Nero followed behind the siblings as she led the way up the stairs towards their mother's room. Once they reached the top floor, they took a hallway that was dark and seemed to be completely different from the rest of the place. The antique wallpaper was peeling to reveal cracking walls and the floors were covered with layers of dust. The cobwebs made it apparent that the spiders had found a place to call home in the crevices of the hall. Dante watched as a gray, long haired cat dashed by to stand near the door at the end of the hallway.

"Don't mind Drusus, he's harmless if you don't make him mad," Isaiah informed as if it were an important piece of information. But Dante and Nero had no intention of touching a cat that looked like it wanted to rip their throats out. Even if it was just a cat, they felt they needed to keep their distance.

Before they reached the door, Annette turned to Dante and Nero, "I'm just warning you now, my mother hasn't had visitors besides my brother and I for a few centuries, so she is more than likely to get into your mind to see what kind of person you are. Are you two ok with that?"

Drusus stared up at the two men, inspecting them with its green eyes as its tail brushed the floor back and forth. Dante ignored the cat and nodded, "I'm ok with it"

He looked over at Nero, "Yeah, sure. But how are we going to know if she's getting in our heads or not?"

"You'll know," was her simple reply.

Isaiah turned the knob on the door and let it creek open to a fairly dark room lit only with candles. He went inside first with a smile on his face with the others following him. There, by the window, stood a thin woman with her back to them. Long, dark curly hair cascaded down to her knees over a fading blue Victorian style dress.

"Mother, it's me, Isaiah. Annette is here too," Isaiah walked forward, his long hair flowing behind him as he stepped towards his mother and put a hand on her shoulder

"You brought guests," her voice was soothing.

She turned around towards the guests slowly, "My name is Levana. I am pleased to meet you both"

A beautiful face turned towards them to reveal a satin strip over eyes that were no longer there. She smiled warmly as she faced the two new comers welcomingly.

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_A.N. Finally! I got this done! I know the battle is really short but what do you expect for a first fight? The fights will get better soon, I promise. Oh, let me know if I need to correct anything like spelling errors and such. I tend to neglect going over my work a lot of the time._

_The next chapter will be more about the discussion with Levana and there will probably be a little trip off to another location. It'll get too boring if we stay in one place right?_

_Thank you so much to everyone who is supporting me!! I seriously mean it! You guys are the only reason why I keep writing and you know who you are _=D

_Can you tell I'm having too much fun with unusual names? haha_


	7. Who to Trust

Eight for the Outcast

Chapter 7: Who to Trust

_A.N. Wydow does not belong to me. She belongs to Wydow Zamure (Thank you so much for letting me use her in this story!!)_

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Levana stepped forward away from the window and outstretched her arms towards Dante and Nero with her palms held up parallel away from her face. Nero shifted uncomfortably as something seemed to probe his mind, searching for what made him the man he was. Thankfully, the probing stopped before going farther than he would have liked. The uncomfortable sensation was then passed to Dante, who tried to seem nonchalant about the intrusion into his mind. Just like Nero, the probing stopped before getting too far into memories he didn't want others to see. Annette and Isaiah watched silently as their mother put her hands back at her side and smiled once more.

The graceful woman closed the remaining distance between them and stroked the side of Nero's face once, holding her smile, "You need not be worried child, I will not harm you. What are your names?"

Nero tried not to pull away from the strikingly cold, yet kind, hand, "My name is Nero"

She turned her head towards Dante, the satin strip over her eyes catching the light from the candles, "The name's Dante"

Her hand slid away from Nero's cheek, "Sparda's Son?"

"Yeah, that's me," he answered, wishing people would recognize him as something other than just 'Sparda's Son'.

Annette stepped forward, knowing her mother was going to go into some story about Sparda if she didn't interject, "Mother, we need to ask you some questions"

The smile Levana had been holding on her face didn't fade, "I know, I've had a feeling you would"

She walked towards a wooden chair and took her seat. Drusus came dashing inside the room and took his place on Levana's lap as Annette and Isaiah sat on the edge of their mother's bed. Dante and Nero both stood, being that there were no more available seats in the room. Levana stroked Drusus' fur as she awaited the questions with the cat purring.

"What do you know that The Elders aren't telling us?" Annette didn't hesitate to begin.

Everyone's attention did not stray from the blind beauty, awaiting an answer as she continued to stroke Drusus, "A question very similar to that was what cost me my sight"

"The Elders did that?" Dante questioned, becoming a little bit more suspicious of the head vampires.

Levana nodded, "I went searching for answers that The Elders didn't want found. I grew suspicious, just as you have Annette, and did research on the demons and if they really did affect us like they say," she paused, thinking over the past, before turning her face towards the others, "They don't affect us, but I feel you have already found that out Annette"

"Yes," Annette replied with a nod, "I fought against a demon named Zephyros"

"Zephyros? Very pathetic, even in the underworld," Levana shook her head.

"What else did you find?" Nero urged

"The Elders took my eyes before I could discover more and told me not to speak of it outside this room or they would take my children," her mouth twitched with slight irritation, "They are definitely hiding something if they want to keep the fact about vampires being able to fight demons such a secret. The Elders are more than likely in league with the demons and don't want the others discovering that fact"

"It would make more sense, but what about that Louis guy?" Dante questioned, almost forgetting about who they were originally after.

"Louis?" Levana shook her head ever so slightly, "He does not have the power of conjuring up demons, no matter how hard he tried. Only The Elders have that kind of power, which is why I suspect them more for the recent appearance of that demon, Zephyros"

"How do you think Louis will try to get revenge on the coven then, mother?" Annette's theory of Louis summoning demons was out the window now.

Levana sat in thought for a few seconds before responding, "You know that there are two covens, correct?"

"Yes"

"There are actually three"

Isaiah stood up as if he had sat on a needle, "How can that be?!"

"The third coven was kept secret from all others except The Elders and The Leaders because of the coven's dark intentions. Basically, they are all outcasts that had been sentenced to die. Over the centuries, these outcasts had formed their own coven in hopes that, one day, they could gather up enough power to overthrow the two original covens and bring back the ancient days where we would drink our victims to death," she frowned as she continued, "It's a horrific thought and Louis has the power to get that coven to do just that, whether or not they have the numbers necessary to do such a thing. The Elders and The Leaders know of this but are not allowed to act against them unless they make a move first"

"But how do the plans of The Elders and Louis' plans fit together?" Nero asked as he shifted his weight, crossing his arms crossed over his chest

"They don't," was her reply, "There are two completely different agendas being carried out. I know Louis' motive but The Elders' motives aren't clear to me"

There was a moment of silence as everyone took in the new information, trying to conjure up a way to discover The Elders' hidden plans. Druses glanced up at Levana before she smiled and nodded, as if the cat spoken and reminded her of something.

"However, one might be able to help you with that problem," she spoke suddenly and everyone glanced towards her, "go to Wydow. She is The Leader of the second coven and has the power to see things others don't"

"Wydow?" Annette knit her brows in thought, "She is Leader of the second coven now?"

Her mother nodded after letting Drusus jump out of her lap, "Yes, after the previous Leader decided that it was best to let a younger generation lead, he chose her as his successor"

Levana stood up and faced towards the window, despite the fact that she could see nothing. Isaiah new that it meant she was ready for them to take their leave so she could rest. He gestured for his sister and the two men to make their way out of the room.

"Get some rest, Dante and Nero. Both of you will need it," were her last words before the door was shut behind them.

Isaiah glanced at the door a moment longer before turning to the others, "You three should get some rest since we'll be making a long trip tomorrow. I will make a call to the second coven so Wydow will know we will be paying her a visit"

"Aren't you worried that that crazy guy could come and attack this place while we're gone?" Nero asked

Annette shook her head before replying, "No, I am sure that Louis will wait for my brother and I to come back before doing anything of significance. He will more than likely want every single member of the coven rid of; no survivors"

**********************

It hadn't been long after everyone laid their heads down to sleep that Nero sat up and looked down where Kyrie should have been. He pushed the thoughts of her to the back of his mind as he let his legs dangle over the bed, his back to the still sleeping Dante and Annette. Or, he thought Annette was asleep when he turned to see her glowing eyes advert their attention to him.

"Something wrong Nero?" she whispered.

"Not really," he lied

She yawned before speaking again, "If you need to use the restroom its two doors down on the right, just don't stray anywhere else"

Annette laid her head back down and turned over to return to sleep. Nero really didn't have any reason to go to the restroom at the moment, but it seemed like a good excuse to leave the room. After pulling the sleeve of his shirt down over his Devil Bringer, he exited the room and quietly closed the door behind him.

"You're Nero, right?"

The velvety voice slightly startled him before he turned his head to see Pandora, the woman he and Dante had seen before the party. Annette had said something about staying away from her but something about the look on her face didn't send out the warning signs he might have been expecting.

"That's right," he replied, hiding his Devil Bringer arm behind his back and sticking his hand into his back pocket so it wasn't obvious he was trying to hide something, "Did you need something?"

"Nero, what is it like outside in your world?"

He didn't say anything as she neared him with pleading eyes, deciding the best way to answer her question.

"I've been cooped up in this musty place for too long," then came the look in her eyes that sent the warning signals that he had been looking for before, "Humans come and go in this place to feed us, but I want to experience other things besides the humans. Like, how a half-breed must taste"

She liked her lips seductively and her blue eyes grew dark.

"Want to know how it feels to be drunk by a vampire?"

Nero avoided the hand that was reaching for his face, "Sorry, but I think I'll pass on that offer. I'm not really a donor anyway"

"If you want to resist, I can always _force_ you into submission," Pandora was about to reach out for him once again before a figure came like a phantom in between them. The blonde snarled and growled when she noticed who it was, "Damn you Annette!"

"Pandora, you may only feed on the humans that are brought here, not on my guests," Annette stared Pandora down, her muscles tense if Pandora decided to do something rash.

The blonde chuckled darkly, "You know you want to feed on them as much as I do. The others have discovered that you fought a demon and didn't die, so now they want to know what a demon's blood tastes like. I thought a half-breed might be interesting since it has both human and demon blood"

Pandora leaned closer towards Annette, "You better watch them carefully while they are here. Who knows who will try to get their blood next"

She took one last lustful glance at Nero before turning to practically disappear down the hall. Annette sighed and turned around, "She didn't do anything to you did she?"

"No, but she was getting ready to," Nero took his hand out of his back pocket since there was no longer a need to hide his Devil Bringer.

Annette looked relieved, but it seemed for more than one reason. Nero wanted to ask about it, but didn't. Maybe it was better not knowing what could have happened if she hadn't shown up to stop Pandora.

********************

It was barely six in the morning when Isaiah brought the car around to the front and put it in park before stepping out. Annette was busy talking to someone on her cell phone with her back to the others, her heels clicking against the stone pavement as she paced back and forth. This morning she had decided on wearing a pair of tight leather pants and a matching corset over a flowing blue shirt. Dante would have been scanning her up and down with a grin but he was too tired to do anything but yawn and try his best to keep his eyes open. Despite this, he noticed that Annette was carrying a weapon with her today. She had an English rapier tied to her belt loop, more than likely charmed.

Nero, surprisingly not feeling the least bit tired, waited slightly impatiently for their ride to be ready and to get on the road. This whole thing with vampires was making him slightly impatient to get the mission done, especially after last night. Annette ended the conversation she was having and closed her cell before turning to the two half-devils, "Alright, I have everything cleared and it won't be a problem to get you two in. But, you two still have to stay very close to my brother and I when we arrive"

Isaiah came around from the other side of the car, "Everything is ready. We shouldn't have any problems getting there and back"

Nero walked past Annette towards the car, Isaiah making a small conversation before he stepped into the vehicle. Annette looked towards Dante who looked like he hadn't slept in days. She giggled before shaking her head, "You can sleep in the car. It will take us about six hours to get there. That should be plenty of time to catch up on your sleep"

The six hours went by like a breeze as Dante slept through the ride. Even before he fell asleep, he was hoping that there would be no demon attacks. Dante would have enjoyed having some good fights any other time, but he was too tired to even crack a joke right now. He awoke just in time to see a castle more gothic in appearance than the one they had left with gargoyles perched around the top like guardians. Before even putting the vehicle in park, a young blonde woman wearing a light Victorian pink dress walked out to greet them. As she neared the car, both Nero and Dante saw just how luminous her green eyes were. Did all vampires have glowing eyes?

Annette opened the passenger door, "Hello, Cera, it has been far too long"

"Oui," her shining lips sparkled as they stretched into a smile, "I've missed you since I was transferred here"

Cera was a French vampire, no doubt about that. Her accent was more than enough proof of that fact. Nero opened the car door and stepped out while Dante did just the same on the other side of the car. The young girl's eyes grew wide with a form of excitement that Nero couldn't quite place, but he new what it was when Annette stepped in front of her and shook her head.

"These two men are the guests my brother talked to you about yesterday, they are off limits," Annette spoke sternly before the excited look in Cera's eyes slightly faded away.

"What a shame, they both smell so delicious"

Annette ignored the statement and introduced the two, "This young one is Nero, and the other man's name is Dante, the one I employed"

Cera only nodded, "Nice to meet the both of you, but we should head inside now. Wydow doesn't think its safe to stay out here too long"

"I'll go park the car in the back and meet you inside," Isaiah was about to get back into the car when an ear shattering scream came from the forest surrounding the area.

"The demons followed us here," Nero was about to reach for Blue Rose, but Cera put a hand on his and stopped him.

"That isn't a demon," Annette spoke what Cera was thinking, "It's worse"

Isaiah's gaze darted towards Annette with worry, "Sister-"

"There's no helping it," she interrupted.

"Let me guess," Dante looked towards the figure beginning to show itself, "Blondie followed us here"

The figure dressed in a bloodstained white suite stepped out from the forest and grinned, "You guessed correctly"

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_A.N: I hope this chapter is ok, I really didn't know what to do with this one. And Louis coming in was a last minute decision. I needed him to come in anyway since he hasn't shown his face for a while. The next chapter should be a lot better than this one, I hope. This one was just to set up some more twists that I'll be incorporating later. _

_If this is boring I'm sorry, but I'm trying not to make the story get into the heat of things too soon like I usually do. My goal is to have more chapters than Emerald Eyes. _

_Thank you so much for your support: Tori-chan, Deb-chan and TheMovieGuy._

_Especially Deb-chan…The only reason this story exists is because of you!_


	8. Facing Red Eyes

Eight for the Outcast

Chapter 8: Facing Red Eyes

_Wydow does not belong to me but to Wydow Zamure (thank you so much again!)_

_And Cera belongs to my sister...(that is her actual name as well and it is pronounced like Sara)  
_

_A.N: Ok, I'm going to say this now since I've already had to explain this to someone before…Nevan from Devil May Cry 3 is not a vampire. The fact that she controls bats does not make her a vampire. Nevan is a succubus. If you don't know what that is, you'll have to look it up._

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Nero studied the crazed looking man he was now seeing for the very first time and was wondering why he had been stopped from pulling out a weapon. He glanced at Dante for an answer but he was too busy eyeing the blood splattered figure with caution while still holding his usual cocky grin. Annette was the only one that made a move forward without hesitation, despite the look of worry Isaiah tried to hide.

"His skin is as hard as diamonds," Cera informed him over the tension, "His only weakness is fire, which Annette possesses"

"But what is the lunatic doing _here_?" Nero asked

Cera only shrugged before pushing a strand of hair away from her face. Nero slowly took in the fact that he was never going to be able to get revenge for those who had been killed in Fortuna. If Annette was the only one that could take the crazed vampire down, he had no reason to be here. But he couldn't go back without at least witnessing his death. '_That's the only reason_,' he thought, frustrated.

"To what do we owe this pleasure of your visit, Louis?" Annette asked bitterly

"I was hoping to convince Wydow to join me, but it seems you have beat me here," Louis replied with a toothy grin, looking even more so like someone that deserved to be wearing a straightjacket, "Even so, I'll still have my army"

"You should know Wydow would never join a cause such as yours, she's too smart for that," Cera called out, "And what army are you talking about?"

"You wouldn't happen to be talking about that third coven would you?" Dante crossed his arms over his chest and watched as Louis' face tried to hide the shock of being found out before his eyes shot to Dante with a glare.

"The third coven?" Cera asked but she was ignored.

"How did you find that out?" Louis hissed

"You will never know," Annette replied, "But I suggest you leave now, Louis. There are a few more fire users here than just me"

Louis kept his eyes on Annette, "You and your coven have eight days. Eight days to prepare for your downfall"

"And we will be ready"

They all watched as Louis disappeared from where he had come. Cera continued looking at Dante and then the siblings with confusion regarding the third coven she had never heard of before. She then looked at Nero for answers for a brief moment but decided she might want to hear it from Annette or Isaiah.

"Une troisième?! Impossible, there's only two," The blonde woman shook her head with doubt, but couldn't seem to deny it after seeing how Louis had reacted when Dante had said the man's plans aloud.

"That's what we thought, as well. But my mother let us in on some of the secrets The Elders and Leaders keep to themselves," Isaiah replied after making sure Louis wasn't coming back

"We really need to speak with Wydow now, Cera," Annette began walking towards the castle, "We don't have much time according to Louis"

Cera nodded, hoping that she would be able to hear more about this said third coven soon. She said nothing more, however, as she lead the small group into the castle and straight across the ball room that was twice the size of the one at the other coven with two spiraling staircases on both sides. Vampires of all ethnicities passed by them, whispers stirring around the group while some pointed at Dante and Nero. One vampire tried to lure Dante away from the group at one point, but for once he took someone else's advice and avoided eye contact just as Annette had told him once before.

"When was the last time your coven has fed? It looks like it has been weeks," Isaiah noted after passing an almond skinned woman with hungry golden eyes.

"We are scheduled for that tomorrow. It is harder to get humans out here than you would think," Cera responded before muttering some curses in French under her breath about her hunger and then glaring at the golden eyed vampire to keep her away from Dante and Nero.

They ascended one of the spiral staircases and approached a wooden door with intricate carvings of gargoyles, the knob carved to resemble the head of a gargoyle to carry on the theme. Cera turned the knob without a word or even a knock, and stepped into the fairly large room with the others following behind.

"Wydow, the guests have made it safely," Cera greeted as the other four came into view behind her.

Mismatched eyes looked up from an old and tattered book, black hair falling over the shoulder. Her green left eye and her purple right eye studied the newcomers with a stoic expression without a word. Even without looking at her, there was a feeling in the room that wouldn't let anyone deny her importance here. Wydow was sitting in a black strapless, sweet-heart neckline dress that pooled down to her ankles, almost as if it were liquid, barely covering her black heels. A deep purple corset was worn over the mid-torso part of the dress, tied down the front with a black ribbon.

A moment passed before her expression went from expressionless to full of knowing, "Please, have a seat"

She made a sweeping gesture with her arm towards the seats that were available near her, Cera leaving with word that she would bring wine for them while the others seated them selves.

"Louis believes he can accomplish his revenge without flaw," Wydow began as soon as the door was closed, "Which might happen if you are not careful"

"Are we going to be able to stop him and that third coven?" Dante asked before Annette could even open her mouth, "After listening to Annette here, wouldn't we need to know the weakness of every vampire there?"

Wydow shook her head every so slightly, "Not necessarily. You see, not every vampire has only one way to be killed. Yes, Louis only has one weakness and that is fire. That is the only way to kill him. However, with others unlike him, they can be killed just as mortals can be killed, though not as easily"

"What is the easiest way?" Annette asked, feeling slightly embarrassed that she lacked knowledge about her own kind.

Wydow uncrossed and crossed her legs, her eyes scanning over the small group once again before answering, "The first way is most likely the easiest but I detest it since it is more on the barbaric side. The second option is to shoot them in the heart or head with bullets of pure silver"

"First cliché that's actually true," Nero leaned back in his seat, "But where are we gonna get these bullets? All we have is lead"

Nero glanced at Dante, thinking maybe he might have a supply of silver bullets but thought it over. Why would he have a need to? So Nero looked back towards Wydow, hoping she knew where to get silver bullets on such short notice.

"I have twelve bullets on hand, but that is not nearly enough for what you four want to accomplish," Wydow stood up from her seat and walked towards a dresser of dark wood with what seemed to be a jewelry box on top of it. However, upon opening the box, she revealed to them the twelve bullets she had mentioned, "I will give these to Dante and Nero. Isaiah and Annette, do you two have any guns of your own?"

"None," Isaiah replied, "We only have swords at our coven"

Cera then made her entrance into the room with a bottle of wine and five glasses on a silver tray. She placed the tray on a small table near Wydow and began pouring the wine while Wydow began speaking once again.

"I see," she mused, taking the first glass of wine and nodding a polite and silent thanks to the young vampire, "But you do know how to use a gun properly, correct?"

Cera handed out the wine wordlessly then left the room with the silver platter in hand silently before closing the door behind her.

"Of course," Annette replied, but she didn't like the thought of using a gun one bit. She felt that a gun just didn't suit her tastes, but she would have to put up with it for now.

Wydow took a sip of her wine and then looked down at the burgundy colored liquid, "In that case, you will need to see James. For the guns as well as the silver bullets"

"He's here in this place right?" Dante couldn't help but ask after finishing his own glass of wine, but he felt he already knew the answer to that question.

"No, he's a human so he lives outside of here. James is one of the few humans who know of our existence. He offered to make weapons for our kind about twenty years ago after he stumbled upon this coven," Wydow set her wine glass down before continuing, "Do not worry. The small town he resides in isn't far from here, so you will still have plenty of time to get back to the other coven. He should have some pre-made guns around his shops; that will save time as well"

Annette was the first to stand, more than eager to get to that shop and then back to her home, which was probably an unsafe place at the moment, but it was still home.

"Thank you very much Wydow," Annette slightly bowed her head in respect, "I'm sorry for any discomfort our sudden visit might have brought to you"

"Not at all," Wydow waved her hand dismissively, "But, Annette, be careful when going up against Louis. Don't let your guard down for even a split second around him. Even if you have his only weakness, that doesn't particularly mean guaranteed victory"

**********************************************************

Isaiah pulled up to a small shop with the name '_Connor's_' fading above the glass door. He looked around for anyone else that might be walking near the store but spotted no one. The place looked partially abandoned so maybe no one knew it was still in business. Dante squinted as he looked out of the window on his side and saw the same view as Isaiah; desolate.

"It might as well be a ghost town," Nero commented and then saw an older man step out of '_Connor's_' with a slightly annoyed expression.

"You folks gonna come in or just sit there in yur car waitin' for somethin' exciting to happen?" he put his hands on his hips, "Wydow already called me and told me you were comin' so lets get this over with"

"Lets go, we shouldn't be stalling," Annette got out of the car and watched as the others did the same.

The old man watched them with pale green eyes, crossing his burly arms over his chest while he studied the young group. He was a rather stout man standing only a little over five feet tall with thinning gray hair on the top of his head and a salt and pepper beard under his nose. The way the man was looking at them reminded Dante of Popeye the sailor man but he had no intention of saying that out loud, even if the man _did_ have a wooden pipe at the side of his mouth too further the 'Popeye' affect.

"Well, come on in. I don't have all day," How busy could this guy possibly be in a place like this? They followed behind the old man into the shop, only to be amazed at how many different types of weapons were hanging around the place. "Look but don't touch. Almost all these weapons you see are commissioned weapons and I won't have you playin' with 'em like kids in a toy store"

Dante and Nero were both impressed by the craftsmanship of the weapons, both thinking that they should have this guy make something for them sometime or another. Isaiah tried not to let his attention get too strayed from the real reason they were here, though he couldn't help but glance at some of the sabers that were mounted above the old man's desk.

"Wydow told me that two of you needed guns," the old man sat down in a swivel chair that looked like it had seen better days, "I'm guessin' it's the dark haired kids since you two back there already have yur guns by the looks of it"

"That's right," Isaiah nodded.

"Well, old James here has the best selection but you better choose wisely because I don't take no refunds or exchanges, got it?" he stated firmly, with that 'Popeye' look of his again while he took his pipe out of his mouth.

"Yes sir," Annette almost stuttered. For a human, he was pretty intimidating.

"Alright, go in the back and see what you'd like. Make sure it feels right in yur hand or you won't wanna use it"

The siblings nodded in unison and strode towards the back of the store. With them out of his sight, James fixed his Popeye gaze on Dante's and Nero's weapons.

"Some pretty nice weapons you boys got there, mind if I take a look at 'em?" he stuck the pipe back into his mouth.

"Uh, sure, I guess," Nero looked at Dante, who shrugged with a grin. There couldn't be any harm in showing the guy their weapons. Nero placed Blue Rose into the man's eager hands and watched as James inspected the gun from every angle.

"Really well made, obviously custom. The engravings are a nice touch," he ran his hands over the engravings down the barrel of the gun, "Who made this?"

"Don't know really," Nero admitted

The man wasn't seeming to pay attention, giving Nero back his gun and gesturing for his sword, which he handed over reluctantly.

"What's with this handle?"

"Let's just say you don't want to turn that gear unless you wanna get burned," Nero had to get out quickly, stopping the more than curious man from doing just that.

"You wouldn't mind if I used this idea for a commission of mine would ya? I know this would make my client happy," turned friendly by the sight of weapons foreign to him, James seemed to be a more likable person now.

"Go ahead," Nero answered, but the man was already writing the notes down about the weapon.

James' eyes then locked on Ebony and Ivory, the two guns Dante was already pulling out since his weapons were next in line to be looked over.

"I know that work anywhere," a grin spread across James' face, "Grue really outdid herself with those twins there, it's a shame she's not among us anymore. She was a true artist when it came to firearms"

"Sir! We have decided on the guns we'd like!" Annette called, forcing the man to turn from Dante.

The demon slayer was more than thankful for that since he really didn't want to talk about Grue at the moment; this was not the time for stirring up memories. James walked towards the siblings, curious on which firearms they had chosen.

"Hey Dante, what if the silver bullets Wydow gave us don't fit in our guns," Nero asked, thankful to have his Red Queen back, "She only had one type in that box, and they didn't look like rounds that would fit in Blue Rose from where I was sitting"

"They fit in Ebony and Ivory at least," Dante shoved his twin pistols back into the holsters, "We all need to ask James for more of them anyway so I wouldn't worry about it kid"

James was holding a few boxes when he came back to his desk, the siblings following close behind with their new guns in hand. Annette held something that resembled a revolver with symbols carved all over the barrel; probably a spell of some sort. Isaiah held a revolver himself, but his was a double action and had twice the amount of symbols carved in to the golden barrel than the revolver his sister carried. The siblings went around the desk to stand by Dante and Nero while James opened the boxes he had been carrying.

"Ok, these are all the silver bullets I have on hand. There are a little more than two hundred for each individual gun," James waited while all four reached for their respective bullets and loaded their guns before closing the boxes once again, "If you kids can aim, that will be more than enough to get yur job done," James cleared his throat before pointing at the revolvers in the siblings hands', "Now, you two don't really need to worry about aimin' precisely too much. Those charms will do the work for ya, even if ya miss by a long shot. As long as you know the target ya want to hit, yur good to go"

Annette opened her mouth to thank the man when an earsplitting explosion from outside shook the whole building. Everyone had their hands over their ears as they looked around the shop, some of the weapons falling from their places, before seeing the fire blazing outside where the car had been. Dante and Nero were the first to sprint towards the now shattered glass door and stand outside with the debris crunching under their boots. The culprits were not too far from the scene of the crime however; three crazed vampires with fire balls floating in their hands. There were two men and a woman standing barefoot in the street, smudged with dirt in their tattered clothes. Isaiah and then Annette stepped out of the shop, immediately noticing how red the eyes of the crazed vampires were.

"Stay inside James, you'll be safer there!" Isaiah called out to the old man. Why _wouldn't_ the man be safe in his weapon shop?

"Isaiah," Annette whispered, "They're practically starved"

"I know, I see it," Isaiah looked towards Dante and Nero, "Do you have your silver bullets ready?"

"Yeah, had that done before we got here," Dante pulled out his twin pistols while the crazed vampires slowly advanced

"Of course," Nero had Blue Rose in hand already

"Be very careful you two," Annette warned, "I don't care how well you fight, don't underestimate an almost starved vampire"

The crazed woman vampire shrieked like a banshee and jumped towards Dante with her hands aflame. The devil hunter tried to get a shot but had to dodge to the side before the woman could attack him. Nero tried to take a shot at her while her back was turned but had to dodge one of the two men that lashed out at him with claws on his still flaming hands.

"_Do you ssssmeell that Claire? Ethan? Ssssparda blood!_" the third vampire sniffed the air and eyed the two men with silver hair.

"_Delicious! Delicious! I want it!_" the one named Claire licked her lips

"_Who ever gets them first shall be the one to drink them!!_" Ethan exclaimed and lunged after Nero once again. He didn't make it far when a bullet grazed his shoulder; intentionally missing the vitals by the look on Isaiah's face. Ethan and the other two froze in place when they realized that it was a silver bullet.

"I don't want to kill you, but I will if I have to," Isaiah held his gun firmly in his right hand.

Claire chuckled darkly, "_We don't care one bit! Even if you do kill us, you won't be able to escape _all_ of us!_"

More than thirty pairs of hungry, red eyes appeared in the dark allies between the buildings around them. More than thirty blood hungry vampires had surrounded the four and were licking their lips at the smell of Dante's and Nero's blood, hoping to spill it and drink it as soon as they could.

"This isn't good," Annette had never seen so many blood thirsty vampires in one place. She gulped, "This isn't good at all"

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_Finally! Didn't think I'd get this one done!_

_Ok, so I'm trying to pick this up and get into some more action, which is what this story is lacking…really lacking. I was going to have just the three vampires show up, but, why not add over thirty and make it more interesting?_

_Anyway, for those who have stuck with me from the beginning of this story, thank you so much! I really appreciate it! I hope to keep this story alive and I will try not to disappoint! Remember, constructive criticism is always welcome =D_

_Thank you so much once again for your support Deb-kun! Like I have said before, you are the only reason this story exists =D_


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